Sayna tossed and turned, her heart still thumping like she was back in that backseat. The room felt way too hot. She couldn't stop thinking about the way Tian's skin felt under her fingers. It wasn't like touching a celebrity anymore. It felt... real.
"Get a grip, Sayna," she whispered to the ceiling. "He was drugged. He didn't even know it was you."
But her body wasn't listening to her brain. Her skin was still tingling. She remembered how his heavy breathing sounded in the quiet car and how he'd leaned his forehead against her shoulder. For a second, she had felt like the most important person in his world.
She reached under her pillow and grabbed her phone again. Trying to scroll insta. A photo of Tian popped in screen. It was some article about how he was stalked and etc. I'm worried,she whispered.
Her heart was racing so fast she could feel it in her throat. But then she remembered Chen's cold face and the way he warned her to stay in her lane.
"I'm just the makeup girl," she muttered, her eyes stinging. "To him, I'm just a tool to look good."
She threw the phone across the bed. She pulled the covers over her head, trying to hide from her own thoughts. But even in the dark, she could still see his face—that broken, needy look he had in the alley.
She knew one thing for sure: after tonight, she could never look at him the same way again. And tomorrow morning, she had to stand six inches away from his face and pretend like nothing happened.
She was "just a touch-up" girl. And tonight, she had touched far more than his makeup.
Sayna's apartment: 2:25 A.M.
The sheets were a mess around her legs, and the air in the room felt way too hot. Sayna's eyes were squeezed shut, her head pushed back into the pillow as she let herself go. She wasn't the "professional assistant" anymore. She was just a girl who had seen her idol at his most vulnerable, and she couldn't get it out of her head.
Her fingers were moving faster now, desperate and slick. She could still feel the phantom weight of him leaning against her in that backseat.
"Tian..." she whimpered, the sound escaping her throat before she could stop it. "God, Tian... please..."
She pictured his face just inches from hers, those cold, beautiful eyes finally melting, looking at her like she was the only thing that could save him. She imagined his hands—the ones she spent all day watching—finally grabbing her waist, pulling her flush against him.
"I saw you," she whispered into the dark, her voice trembling and thick with heat. "I saw how much you wanted me in that car... I saw what you were hiding..."
The memory of that bulge against his trousers, the way his breath had hitched when her hand brushed his thigh—it was making her lose it. She arched her back, her breath coming in short, jagged gasps.
"Touch me," she gasped, her eyes fluttering open to the empty ceiling. "Tian... please... just like that... don't stop..."
When the tension finally snapped, she bit down hard on her lip to muffled a cry, her body shuddering as the wave hit her. She lay there for a long time afterward, chest heaving, the silence of the room feeling ten times heavier than before.
She had said his name. She had begged for him. And in a few hours, she had to stand in front of him and act like she didn't know exactly what he sounded like when he moaned.
—————
——-
The next morning….
The studio lights were way too bright. Sayna was standing at the vanity, her heart racing. Her hands were shaking so much she could barely hold the eyeliner brush. She felt like if she looked at Tian, he would know exactly what she was thinking about last night.
Tian walked in, looking tired and a bit moody. He sat down in the chair and stared at her in the mirror. His eyes were dark and heavy.
"Sayna," he said, his voice sounding deep and a little raspy. "Your hands... why are they shaking like that?"
Sayna turned bright red and looked down at her kit. "I... I just had too much caffeine, Mr. Tian. Sorry."
His skin was burning hot, just like it was in the car. He didn't look like he was sick anymore. He looked angry.
"Sayna," he said, his voice sounding deep and scary. He was staring at her through the big mirror. "About last night. In the car... and that alley."
Sayna felt like she couldn't breathe. Her face was turning bright red. "Mr. Tian, I... I didn't mean to—"
Tian didn't say anything for a second. Then, he suddenly reached out and grabbed her wrist.
"Shut up," he snapped, his eyes narrowing.
"Forget it. All of it. Don't ever bring it up. Don't tell anyone. If I find out you told even one person, you're fired. I'll make sure you never work in this industry again."
He leaned in closer, and Sayna could smell his expensive cologne. It made her head spin.
"It was just the drug," he said, his voice cold as ice. "It wasn't real. I don't want you looking at me like that ever again. You're just my makeup artist. That's it. Do you understand?"
Sayna felt a huge lump in her throat. She wanted to cry right there. Last night, he was practically begging for her in the car, and now he was acting like she was trash.
"I... I understand, Mr. Tian," she whispered. She felt so embarrassed. She had spent the whole night touching herself and thinking of him, and he didn't even care.
"Good," he said, letting go of her arm like he hated touching her. He sat back and closed his eyes. "Now stop shaking and finish my face. We have a shoot to start."
Sayna picked up her brush, her eyes stinging with tears. She had to stand right there and touch his skin, even though he just crushed her heart.