The Number One Star in the Interstellar Era

ASTRID looked at the building from the window of the flying car they were in.  It had quite the unique architecture.  It was shaped like a hexagonal prism.  Its surface was made of what it seemed to be like glasses.  But he knew that it must be some kind of special material that was only made to look like a glass. 

Its width was not that wide, but the building made up for it with its height.  It was so tall that one would have an illusion that it could reach the sky.  Of course, that could probably as well be an optical illusion because of the building's glass surface.  It looked a bit out of place in this bustling city center where it was located.  But surprisingly, it just added more charm to it.

"Are there no rooftop parking in this building?" he asked curiously.  Because the top of Polaris' building was like the tip of a cone.  After a few seconds, he still hadn't heard an answer.  So, he glanced back and looked at Lauren.  He then just noticed that the other was in a daze.  "Lauren?"

Hearing his name, Lauren quickly returned to his senses.  He was still thinking of that incident at the atelier just now.  For some reason, that warm touch on his cheek still lingered.  As if there was some kind of ghost hand touching his cheek.  He suddenly had goosebumps at that thought. 

It was all because of that guy.  If he had cream on his cheek, he should just let him wipe it on his own.  Yes, he wasn't able to do that after wiping his cheek twice.  But that didn't mean that he wouldn't be able to do it at his third try.  Wasn't that the reason why there's a saying 'third time is the charm'?  Now, he was feeling weird all over because of that touch. 

He glared at the person responsible who was currently sitting in the front.  Andreas eyes were close, looking as if he was asleep.  He scoffed.  [Hmp!  Pretending to be cool.]

He turned to Astrid, who was sitting beside him, and smiled.  "Sorry, I didn't hear you.  What's your question again?"

Astrid didn't mind and asked his question again. 

"There is.  But it's only available to the president."  Lauren looked at the building.  "One of the sides will open to let the vehicle enter.  As for the employees and artists alike, we have our own parking space."

The parking space for artists was more private compared to the normal employees of the company.  And they're heading to that now.

The car slowly descended to the ground.  As it did, Astrid noticed that as they near the base, the girth of the building widened more and more.  When the car was about to enter the parking space, he saw some small flying cameras floating at some distance away from the building. 

"Are those… paparazzi cameras?" he asked, a bit unsure.

Lauren saw where Astrid was looking and answered, "Yes.  But don't mind them.  The security of the building is top-notch.  Once we enter inside, they wouldn't be able to take pictures."

Astrid wasn't really that worried.  Even if Polaris was not one of the biggest entertainment company in the Empire, its reputation was still one of the best.  Surely, they wouldn't just let some paparazzi take photos of their artists.  He was just a bit surprised to see that they were even using these flying cameras. 

[Well, I guess paparazzi also have to evolve with time.] – he thought.

After entering the parking space, the car landed on one of the free spaces available.

"Astrid, you and that guy over there pretending to sleep can go ahead first.  My assistant is waiting for you near the elevator," Lauren said.  "Do you still remember him?  He was with me at the movie set of [The Sleeping God]."

Although Astrid could only remember a hazy figure, he still said yes.  Because he knew that once he saw this assistant, he would recognize him nonetheless.  His memory when it came to the face of the people he interacted once or twice and didn't really give a crap about worked like that.

"Contact me once you're done touring the building," Lauren added.

Then the twins got out of the car.  And that Andreas didn't even bother to look at his direction.  Which, for some reason or another, made Lauren really annoyed.  Then he scratched the back of his head quite forcefully.  Just what was wrong with him?  What did it matter if that guy paid attention to him or not?  Shouldn't he be happy instead?  He must have gone crazy for a moment there.

He simply shook his head and also shook off whatever this weird feeling that's bothering him.

-----

Astrid looked around for the elevator.  He immediately saw it since it wasn't really located somewhere hidden.  At the same time, he also saw a figure standing near it.  Just like he thought earlier, he quickly recognized Lauren's assistant.

He was about to walk over there when he saw Reas walking to a different direction.  He called to him but the other just continued on walking.  So, he had to run after him and hold his arm.

"Reas, where are you going?"

That stopped Reas.  His teal-gray eyes that seemed to be in a daze became clear.  He turned to his brother.  "Sorry, I was just thinking about something."

Astrid stared at his brother and then remembered how silent he was during the entire car ride.  Even when Lauren said something that would surely annoy him, he still didn't react.  Which showed that he was really bothered by something.  He thought back to when it could have possibly started and he could only think of one instance.

"Are you possibly bothered by what happened with Lauren earlier?  You know when you wiped the cream on his cheek."

Reas' whole face suddenly turned red.  "I- I'm not—" he stopped and then took a deep breath as if trying to calm himself.  After that calming breath, his expression returned to normal.  Or at least as normal as it could be with a slight red tint on his cheeks.  "Why would I be bothered by that?  If I have to describe what I feel, then it could only be annoyance."

Astrid stared at his brother and then smiled.  "Hmm… really?  Because your reaction so far is not that of someone who's simply 'annoyed' as you describe it."