Once Oliver left, the apartment became quiet once again. What Oliver said made her think a lot.

"Everything okay?" Gael wondered. She beamed and nodded as if there wasn't a lot in her mind.

Angela took out a couple of plates and glasses from the cupboard. "Are you hungry already? I'll just set up the table, and we can eat."

"I can wait," he replied. His fresh scent invaded her nose. She could smell her shampoo on him, making her smile.

Then she felt his lips on her shoulder, kissing her before he asked, "Are you sure you're okay? You seem pretty tense."

She tried to back away as she turned to face him. "I haven't showered yet."

"Cute." Gael grinned. "You think a little sweat would scare me?" He placed his hands on either of her sides and lowered his head to her level.

"I sweat like a pig at the gym earlier. I feel sticky." Her nose scrunched up, and then she docked down to escape his cage. "I'll go shower."

He laughed at her evasion, shaking his head. "Sure. I'll set up the table."

***

After dinner, Angela and Gael watched a French movie "The Intouchables" on the sofa. They both had watched it in the past, and they loved it. She even bought the DVD back then.

He sat on one end of the sofa while she lay down, her head on the opposite side and her fluffy-socks-covered feet on his lap—he put it there and began massaging the balls of her feet. She couldn't tell if he did it subconsciously as he didn't glance at her. But she didn't retract her feet—no way, his hands were magical. Earlier, he insisted on putting ice on her shin for a few minutes too.

Grabbing her phone next to her, she tapped it a few times and slightly tilted it at an angle until she was satisfied. Then she took a photo. A small smile plastered on her face while she contemplated for a second before deciding to post it on her Instagram. She hadn't posted about a guy for a really long time, but this… She'd live for this.

She put her phone away and watched the movie again.

Little did she know, Gael would see her post. After all, he followed her account and had his notifications on. So when his phone buzzed, and he saw the screen, he glanced at her and wondered what she just posted. He casually opened the post, and a huge smile cast on his face when he saw an aesthetically pleasing photo of him massaging her feet. The lights were dimmed, and it was angled in a way that only his arms and lap and her lower legs were on it.

And the caption said, [ #Yeslawd Get you a man who rubs your feet. Just because. ]

How weird was it to feel this elated? Gael felt honored because she rarely posted anything really personal like this. He hadn't seen any man in her feed before. Angela had only posted it a minute ago, and it had already garnered so many likes and comments from her friends who were wondering who he was. He liked the post so much that he also pressed the heart, and it was the very first time that he did on any of her posts.

Quickly glancing her way, she seemed to be focused on the movie and had forgotten about her post already. So he took the chance to do something he had never done before.

He captured a photo of her lower leg on his lap—and tried to make it look nice. It was very challenging because he had to be discreet. And after what seemed like forever, he cursed in his head. How could people do this shît every day for just about any little thing? But he was happy with what he got and decided to post it. He had to rewrite a few times before settling on the simplest caption.

After hitting the last button, he checked the only post he had on his account. Under the photo, it said, "Mine."

"What are you doing?" Angela asked when she saw him on his phone. He had a smile on his face, so she was curious what made him smile like that.

Gael lifted his gaze to her and blinked. He smiled, unsure if he should tell her what he just did. Was that creepy? Maybe, and if it was, then so was what she did, right? "Nothing." He put his phone away and continued to rub her feet. His girl liked it, so he didn't mind doing some more.

Angela narrowed her gaze but decided to ignore what that was about. The movie was about to end, and it was getting late. They didn't really discuss whether he was staying the night, and she dreaded the time that he'd have to go. However, she was determined that before tonight ends—or before he leaves, they'd at least have "The Talk".

The more the conversation got delayed, the more she got nervous. She was still uncertain about how things were between them, but if she heard what he had to say, maybe that would help her decide how it would be moving forward. They could at least agree on some things.

The credits rolled on the screen of the T.V., and neither of them moved. Gael checked the time on his watch, and that's when he said, "I should get going." He carefully removed her feet from his lap and got up.

"Wait!" Angela's heart drummed in her chest. She nearly stumbled on the floor as she got to her feet so quickly to stop him.

His brows raised, waiting for her to say something. Shoving his hands into his pockets, he was also getting nervous, not knowing what she was about to tell him.

After beating herself up, she finally had the courage to initiate. "Before you go… Can you stay for a bit longer? I… We need to talk."