Strings and Schemes

Chapter 24

I shake my head, "still figuring out the being in public this with Zayn, so I figured best not to alert him yet and I am only speaking to my family when necessary."

Liam nods in understanding while Louis gasps dramatically. "Are you telling me we're the first to know? I feel so special. So honoured. So blessed."

I roll my eyes. "Yes, Lou, you're my first call. Now, do you want to help me make sure everything is in place before this moves to Saatchi, or do you want to stand here making me regret my life choices?"

Liam claps his hands together. "Alright, let's get to work. What do you need us to do?"

I glance around the room, noting the slight imperfections—small adjustments that could make each piece shine even brighter under the pristine lighting of the Saatchi Gallery. "We need to check the integrity of the sculptures, make sure nothing needs minor repairs before transport. I also want to rethink the arrangement slightly. If this is going into a bigger space, I want it to feel just as intimate, just as raw."

Louis salutes. "On it, boss. You tell me what needs moving, and I'll use my brute strength."

Liam sighs. "You mean you'll use my brute strength."

I stifle a laugh. "However it gets done, I don't care."

We spend the next few hours making adjustments. Liam helps reinforce the base of The Gilded Cage, ensuring its delicate structure won't shift during the move. Louis, despite his dramatic complaints, actually proves useful in repositioning The Mirror slightly to play with the reflection in the gallery's natural lighting.

"This is my favorite," Liam murmurs, standing in front of The First Touch. "I don't know why, but this one just gets me."

I smile softly. "Because it's the moment before everything changed."

Louis tilts his head, observing it. "It's crazy, yeah? How everything really does come down to those tiny moments. A single second could've sent it all a different way."

We fall silent for a beat, each lost in our own thoughts.

Then Louis claps his hands. "Alright, enough emotional reflection. Are we done here? Because I have an actual life outside of babysitting you lot."

Liam snorts. "Do you?"

Louis ignores him. "What's next, Raina?"

I hesitate for a moment before glancing at my phone. "Actually... I was hoping to steal the gallery for one night. After hours."

Liam raises an eyebrow. "You do realize they have security, yeah?"

I wave my hand. "I already cleared it. I want to do something special."

Louis narrows his eyes at me. "Special? Special for who? Oh my god. Is this for Zayn?"

I ignore him.

"Oh my god, it's for Zayn." He clutches his chest like I've personally wounded him. "Raina, I expect a detailed debriefing after."

I shake my head, laughing. "Get out, both of you."

Liam pats my shoulder. "You sure you don't need anything else?"

I smile. "Nope, you guys did more than enough. Thank you."

Louis leans in conspiratorially. "Are you gonna seduce him under the soft glow of your tragic love story?"

I shove him toward the door. "Bye, Louis."

He cackles as they leave.

Once the gallery is empty, I set to work.

I arrange a picnic in the center of the gallery, right beneath The Final Piece: You Saw Me. I lay down a blanket, set up candles, and pick up his favorite takeout. It's a quiet, intimate space—just us, just the art, just everything unspoken hanging between us.

His breath catches the moment he steps inside.

"Raina..."

I gesture toward the blanket. "I figured... if you were going to see it in a gallery, I wanted you to see it like this."

He doesn't move at first. Just takes it all in. The sculptures, the lighting, the undeniable fact that every inch of this place holds us.

Then, he exhales and steps forward, taking my hand.

"This is..." He shakes his head, lost for words.

I squeeze his fingers. "Sit with me?"

He nods, sitting down beside me as the weight of it all settles between us.

"It's here for six months," I smile, "I hope that's okay with you."

He looks perplexed, "Okay with me?"

"You had said you felt like you were on display, and I know it was tough for you feeling overexposed like that. And, if we do become public by our own choosing or not, I'd be afraid someone would think it was about it - mostly because maybe its obvious with the tightrope piece, but I -"

He cuts off my rambling by kissing me.

"Raina, this is the most wonderful news. You deserve to have your art out here for people to consume and feel," His eyes beam with pride, something I don't often see from my own parents.

Tears brim my eyes recognizing it all.

"Of course you have my permission to put this out there, I all but name dropped you in a song. We will deal with whatever comes our way." He smiles.

"Also, do you have management?" He inquires

I look at him like he has 10 heads, "management?"

"Oh Rain, you need management - how much are they offering you for this?"

I waved my hand, "they said we'd go over the details after."

He shakes his head, "The first rule of show business is to always make sure you get paid."

Then we spend the rest of the night talking business and admiring the view, and maybe stumbling around the gallery getting handsy.