{The Black House}
The elevator doors opened slowly.
Tyla stepped out first.
And then she froze.
"Whoa…"
Her voice echoed slightly in the enormous hallway.
The place was huge.
Not just big… massive.
The walls were black marble.
The floor was dark polished stone that reflected the dim lights above.
Even the decorations were black.
Black paintings.
Black furniture.
Black curtains.
It felt less like an apartment…
and more like a dark palace.
Tyla turned slowly, staring around.
"Oh my God…"
She whispered.
"This looks like a palace… your house
is huge."
Ian shrugged slightly as he walked past them.
"It's just a place I stay sometimes."
But Tyla could tell he was downplaying it.
The ceiling was extremely high.
The living room alone looked bigger than her entire hotel floor.
Large glass windows overlooked the sleeping city lights.
Her mother looked equally stunned.
"This is not a normal apartment," she murmured.
Ian smirked faintly.
"Yeah… I know."
He walked toward the kitchen.
"Sit down. You both look exhausted."
Tyla blinked.
"You're… cooking?"
He glanced over his shoulder.
"Why not?"
She stared at him.
"You ran into a fire tonight… escaped reporters… drove like we were in an action movie… and now you're cooking dinner?"
He chuckled quietly.
"I'm hungry."
In the Kitchen
Soon the quiet apartment filled with soft cooking sounds.
Oil sizzling.
A knife tapping rhythmically against a cutting board.
Tyla sat at the kitchen island watching him.
He moved easily in the kitchen.
Like he had done this many times before.
"You cook a lot?" she asked.
"Sometimes."
He placed plates on the table.
Simple food.
But it smelled amazing.
Rice.
Grilled chicken.
Vegetables.
They sat together and began eating.
For the first time that night…
the tension slowly faded.
Her mother sighed.
"I needed this."
Ian leaned back slightly.
"You're safe here tonight."
Tyla nodded slowly.
But her eyes stayed on him.
Still trying to understand him.
Later That Night
After they finished eating, ian stood up.
"I'm going to take a shower."
He stretched slightly.
"You two should change clothes. You can't sleep in dresses."
Tyla glanced at her mother.
"Yeah… that makes sense."
Then she looked back at him.
"But… do you even have women's clothes here?"
He shook his head.
"I live alone."
Then he opened a closet.
"But you can wear some of mine."
Her mother laughed softly.
"That will look ridiculous." we will dress up like men .
Her mother chose first.
She took a black T-shirt and a loose black pair of pants.
Tyla looked through the clothes.
Then she pulled out a large white shirt.
It looked huge.
Almost like a dress.
She smiled slightly.
"This one."
She went to the guest room on the second floor to change.
When she came out again…
The shirt hung loosely on her shoulders.
It reached her upper thighs.
Underneath, she was still wearing the very short black shorts she had under her dress earlier.
But the shirt was long enough that the shorts were almost invisible.
It looked like she was wearing just the shirt.
She walked into the living room that also on the same second floor quietly.
At that moment…
Ian was walking out of the bathroom not knowing she is on the second floor too .
Still wet from the shower the towel on his shoulder he was totally naked
For one second—
They both froze.
Tyla's eyes widened instantly.
"Oh—!"
She turned away quickly.
"Sorry!"
Ian reacted just as fast.
He grabbed the towel tighter around his waist.
"Shit—"
He quickly stepped back toward the bathroom door.
But not before his eyes had caught a glimpse of her.
The oversized white shirt.
Her bare legs.
The soft mess of her hair.
For a moment…
he just stared.
Then he forced himself to look away.
Don't.
He told himself firmly.
His life was already complicated enough.
Dangerous enough.
He didn't need another distraction.
Especially not her.
So he pushed the thought out of his head.
"Give me a minute," he muttered,
disappearing back into the bathroom.
Tyla exhaled slowly.
Her heart beating faster for no reason she wanted to admit.
From the hallway that on the first floor her mother's voice came.
"Everything okay?"
Tyla cleared her throat.
"Yeah… totally fine."
But somehow…
The night was suddenly a lot more
awkward.
And a lot more interesting.