A sigh escaped Elara’s lips the moment her eyes properly landed on the man’s face.

"What? Are you not happy about having a new neighbor?" Carris asked.

"That’s not a new neighbor," Elara muttered, almost rolling her eyes. "That’s Tonio Adrelo. Haven’t you heard of him before?"

She turned her attention to Carris’s face.

Carris’s brows shot up toward his hairline, a faint smile on his lips.

"Of course. Adrelo? The Aurelian striker." He let out a dry hollow laugh. "The man who changes girlfriends more often than he changes his jerseys. I heard he has a different soulmate in every timezone. What is he doing here with enough groceries to stock a supermarket?"

Elara’s lips pursed as she stared at him.

What is he up to again...

Then she shrugged casually. "I don’t know what he’s doing here."

After Carris parked by the curb, they both got out of the car. As Elara made to take her bag, Carris had already reached for it and picked it up again.

Elara shook her head and walked toward the building.

The moment Tonio set eyes on her, he straightened up, holding five bags filled with things Elara couldn’t even recognize.

"Oh Elara, you’re finally back," he said, moving toward her. "Ziva wouldn’t let me come in. I remembered your fridge looked a bit depressed, so I brought some essentials."

He raised the bags in his hands up to show her.

Elara’s eyes dropped to them. She opened her mouth, but before she could speak, Carris stepped forward, standing right beside her. "Essentials? Unless there’s a famine coming to this street that I didn’t hear about."

Tonio blinked, his lips tightening in displeasure as he looked at him. "And you are?"

"He’s Carris," Elara interrupted. "We’re working on a project together."

"Oh," Tonio exclaimed, a faint sneer forming at the corner of his lips. He moved the bags from his left hand to his right and stretched his hand forward. "Tonio Adrelo," he said, a hint of pride in his voice.

Carris stared at his outstretched hand, his own hand tucked into the pocket of his pants.

"I know who you are," he said flatly, his voice unimpressed. "I’ve seen your face on the backs of bus stops and in sports magazines. Usually with a different woman under each arm."

Elara’s lips pressed together as she turned her gaze back to Tonio. His cool expression had faltered, and his hand was hanging awkwardly in the air.

"Well, fame comes with rumors," Tonio muttered. "And by the way, you and her..." He paused, his eyes flicking to Elara, then back to Carris. "Are ’working’ on a project together?"

Carris finally took his hand out of his pocket, but only to adjust the strap of the bag on him and check his watch. Then he looked up again.

"Yes, we’re working together. On a project that requires her to get some sleep."

Noticing the tension in the air, Elara sighed and stepped forward. She glanced at the boxes on the ground, then at Tonio’s face. "Seriously, all this is not necessary," she muttered.

"Of course I know," Tonio said quickly. "I just want to make sure you’re taken care of. I’ll just put these in the kitchen and leave immediately."

He was already moving to walk past Carris, but Carris suddenly adjusted his stance causing Tonio to almost crash into him.

Tonio looked up, his gaze hardening. Then he snorted, turned and took the longer way around.

A small scoff escaped from Carris’s slightly raised lips as he watched his back. He only looked away when Elara moved forward.

"I never thought you could be close with Adrelo," he said.

–

Before the release happened, Elara had been calm and "unconcerned," at least on the surface. Anyone looking at her would think she had already made peace with whatever outcome waited on the other side. But beneath that stillness, she was very much worried..

What if being beside him dragged everything down?

What if the song, which could have been a record shattering hit on its own ended up reduced to something overlooked... just because her name was attached to it?

Or worse, what if she pulled Carris’s carefully built image down with her, staining something he had spent years polishing?

A faint breath slipped past her lips.

Maybe it would have been better to sing alone. At least then, if things fell apart, she would only have herself to answer to. Noone else would have to sink with her.

Carris, however, did not hesitate at all. He used every connection he had in the industry, skipped the usual month long promotion and pushed the song out into the world almost overnight.

Even though this wasn’t Elara’s first time releasing music, she kept her phone switched off for the first forty eight hours.

It wasn’t out of fear. At least, she didn’t want to call it that.

At the same time, Ziva had been down with a stubborn illness, likely her body finally protesting against Solmere’s cold biting climate. She refused to go to the hospital, insisting she would recover just fine at home. So now everywhere in the apartment reek of medicine.

Elara stood in the kitchen, carefully stirring a pot of herbal tea for her, the steam curling upward in small spirals. Then her phone which she had only just turned back on few minutes ago suddenly flickered against the counter.

She stared at it, her lips pressed together. It was a single message from Carris. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

"Check the charts. And maybe get a bigger phone... your notifications are probably about to explode."

Elara’s brows raised. Then she reached over and turned off the cooker beneath the tea. She picked up her phone from the cabinet and walked out of the kitchen into Ziva’s room.

Ziva was already sitting upright on the bed, a small cooling gel pad pressed against her forehead. Despite the feverish flush on her face, her eyes immediately sharpened the moment Elara entered the room.

Without hesitation, Elara sat beside her and unlocked her phone. "Carris messaged..." she began.

She had barely finished speaking when notifications suddenly flooded the screen.

Messages. Mentions. Tags.

The phone vibrated nonstop in her hand like it had completely lost its mind.

Ziva’s eyes lit up instantly. She pulled the cooling pad off her forehead and snatched the phone from Elara’s hand before she could even react.

Quickly, she tapped a link Carris had sent, and when the page loaded... There it was.

#1 Anemoia — Carris feat. Elara.