secrets // h.s.

chapter five.

"And you didn't see anything unusual?"

Sebastian was sitting in the chair behind his desk, one leg crossed over his other knee, his hands folded in his lap. He wasn't irritated, thankfully. He actually just seemed relieved that I had returned okay, without any bruises or cuts.

"No, not really. Ran into someone, but it wasn't anything suspicious," I responded, and Sebastian quirked a brow, obviously interested.

"Someone?" He questioned curiously, leaning forward a bit to peer across his desk at my where I sat in his lounge chair.

"Yeah, he's just this guy I met a few nights ago, when I went to do research at the gas station. He was buying a water when I interviewed the cashier. And then he was out walking around last night, or jogging or something," I explained to the man a foot or so away, who's expression turned for the worse.

"And how old did he look?" Sebastian asked, now sounding concerned.

"Probably not much older than me, maybe only a couple of years older - why? I'm sure he isn't a threat, sir." At his warning glance, I smiled apologetically, raising my hands. "Sebastian, sorry."

"Don't you think it's strange that this lad was at the first scene of the crime, and then was seen again sulking around the next predicted target?"

I hadn't thought about it like that.

Sure, I'd thought the lanky guy in boots was a bit odd, searching me on Facebook and showing up everywhere I went, but at the very worst I had assumed that I had acquired a stalker. It seemed ridiculously far-fetched to me that he could be suspected for the robberies.

"Well, yes, but-"

"What did he say to you?" I was interrupted by Sebastian's fearful tone, his brows furrowed over his large eyes, his lips pressed together

"Well- uhm, he asked what I was doing, warned me to stop snooping because it could be dangerous for me." I paused, trying to recall the whole of our conversation. "He searched me up on Facebook because he thought I was attractive- he's probably harmless, Sebastian, honestly."

"Probably, yes, but not definitely," Sebastian murmured thoughtfully, letting out a small breath. "I don't really feel comfortable throwing you back out in the field with this man on the streets, but I think you're my best bet, at this point."

I was confused. "What do you mean?"

"I want you to get a photo of him. You're right, he may not have anything to do with our Masked Man, but then again he may. So, I want you to get a photo with him and bring it to me so I can have it run through the system, and we can find out exactly who this lad is, yeah? Whether he's dangerous or not, I'd like to know who's been following you around."

Well wasn't that flattering. I smiled faintly and nodded my head, dimples forming in my cheeks. "Thank you, Sebastian," I mumbled simply, and stood as he did, watching as my reporting director moved over to me, holding out a small hand for him to shake goodbye.

"Oh, please," he mumbled lightly as he pulled me into a loose hug, causing me to laugh softly. I felt lips press to the top of my head as he pulled back, offering me a reassuring smile, and I glanced up.

"Ah- here, your tie," I mumbled lightly as I lifted my hands to his collar, lifting up the flaps of his dress shirt, straightening out his tie, situating the cloth how it should've been, feeling his warm gaze watching me as I moved. I hadn't even realized that his hands had fallen to my hips after our short hug, too focused on his accessory.

"Be careful, yeah?" I heard the man hum and my fingers paused in their movements, glancing up so our eyes could make contact, much closer than I had anticipated. He was leant down a bit so I could have easier access to his black tie, his eyebrows arching, lower lip clasped snugly between his teeth, as if he was in thought. "Not trying to scare you, of course, I just... don't want to see you get hurt, y'know?" He continued, and one of his hands lifted from its place on my hip to take a stray strand of my hair between his fingers, gingerly tucking it back behind my ear.

My cheeks were on fire - they had to be extremely red - as I forced myself to hold his gaze, nodding my head slowly. "Why does everyone seem to think I'm going to get myself hurt?" I questioned, thinking back to how ponytail-guy had expressed the same fear.

Sebastian chuckled softly to himself, his hand dropping from behind my ear, his eyes crinkling at the corners slightly as he shook his head. "I don't," he answered smoothly, shrugging his shoulders. "I think you're very capable of taking care of yourself, Belle. But that won't stop me from worrying."

I moved back to finishing up his tie, and just as I had lowered my hands, I felt warm lips press to the lower portion of my cheek, nearer to my jawline, as Sebastian moved away from me, offering me the same charming smile. "That's all for today, I s'pose," he informed me as he moved back towards his desk, leaning against the edge. "Go get me that photo?"

Attempting to come off less flustered than I really was, I nodded my head, offering him a sheepish smile.

"Will do."

-------

"He kissed you? Bella!" Rory hadn't stopped yanking on me after I'd informed her of my interaction with Sebastian, and with each romantic squeal, I simply rolled my eyes.

"On the cheek, Rory. Jesus, you act like he swept me off my feet," I laughed lightly to myself, my fingers absently logging me into my MacBook.

"I think he likes you. I mean, I know he's a little bit older..." Rory continued, dragging out the 'R' in her last word, and I simply waved her off.

"He was being kind, Rory. He's my boss, basically. He was just persuading me to be safe," I argued gently as I pulled up the browser, going to my Facebook page and logging in.

"Heavy persuasion," I heard my roommate mumble teasingly under her breath, pursing her lips, and I simply shot her an annoyed glare.

Aurora was the flirty, fun, party type of girl. Her and Michael, her boyfriend, were both that way. There had never been two roommates worse paired, despite us being the best of friends. She was blonde, wore short skirts and pumps, went to parties every Friday night, and wanted to be a beautician. I, on the other hand, had never even been to a college party, wanted to become a journalist, and wore sweaters all the way up to my neck, most of the time with jeans or skirts. We were opposites. I was quiet, she was loud. I was naive, she was definitely not. She'd had sex with at least fourteen people - that I knew of - and I had only ever been with one guy, last year. And it technically wasn't even sex, it was... almost sex.

Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I went to my profile on Facebook, moving to my notifications. Two people liked my last photo, on top of the forty-something likes it already had, and I had a friend request from someone named Ashton. I accepted it, frowning slightly. I had hoped, since the guy from the gas station had told me he'd found my Facebook, that he would have requested to be my friend, and I could simply show Sebastian a picture of him online instead of having to snap one in secret.

But of course, things wouldn't be that easy.

"I'll be going out again tonight, Rory," I told the blonde gal sprawled across the foot of my bed, who simply shrugged.

"Busy now, aren't you?" She hummed, obviously focused on some text she had just gotten on her phone.

"I am, yeah. You wanna go for smoothies tomorrow afternoon if I'm not doing something for the internship?" I asked her, and watched as she perked up a little.

"Definitely."