The Number One Star in the Interstellar Era

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REAS' sudden action completely startled Lauren. He was about to say something when he saw the other's reaction. After taking back his hand, Reas just froze. As if it was only then that he realized what he just did. His whole face suddenly turned red once again. And then he looked away as if he couldn't bear to make eye contact with him.

Because of this series of action, Lauren also felt embarrassed for no reason.

[If you're going to be embarrassed after doing something, then you shouldn't have done it in the first place.]—he grumbled to himself.

They barely got out of the awkward atmosphere and now this guy had to do something again to make things awkward. Of course, it's not that he hated the other's actions. In fact... he rather liked it—

No! What the heck was he thinking?

Anyway, the important thing now was to get over this awkward atmosphere. The reason why they went out today to go to this restaurant was so they could have fun. But what kind of fun would they have if the two of them were always blushing and stuttering around each other?

In the first place, it was already super weird for them to be giving out these kinds of reactions. Weren't they friends? Should friends be feeling these tingly feelings? No, maybe he was the only one who was feeling it. Nah, that's definitely not the case. If it was, Reas wouldn't be showing those kinds of reactions.

Did that mean that he was also feeling this giddy? Just like him?

At that thought, heat rose up to his cheeks. Now, even he was blushing. He shook his head fiercely. Really, could his brain only think of these things? What happened to logical and objective thinking?

Lauren forcefully sought clarity. He's the older one. He should be more mature and control this situation so the two of them could at least enjoy their time together without this awkward atmosphere.

He should just act like it's nothing. He's a fairly decent actor. So, this should be easy for him.

He took a deep breath and said in a joking tone while properly wiping away the sauce around his mouth;

"You must think I'm such a messy eater. But trust me, it's not me, but the burger."

Wow. Even Lauren was amazed with himself by how calmly he said that. It even sounded playful to his ears, as if he was really joking. With this, shouldn't he consider himself as a 'good' actor, rather than just 'decent'?

Reas sharply turned his head to look at Lauren. The other had that usual smirk on his face, showing that he didn't mind what Reas did earlier. No, instead of that, it's probably more accurate that Lauren just didn't care. And he's right to do that.

Reas was the only one who's giving meaning to something that didn't have any meaning in the first place. They're friends. So, what's wrong with wiping some sauce on the corner of the other's lips?

And yet, even as he told that to himself, he still couldn't help but feel that there must be something wrong. That things shouldn't be like this. But he didn't know what should have been different. At times like this, he wished he could ask Astrid about this. His brother would definitely provide an answer for him.

But he also knew that he shouldn't do that. He shouldn't rely too much on Astrid when it came to, well, feelings. Because how would he grow emotionally if he always did?

And right now, he really needed a lot of growing.

Reas leaned back in his chair and decided to just ease this awkward atmosphere that he, most likely, caused.

"And here I thought you're just trying on a new lipstick."

He tried to say that in the most natural way possible, but it still came out like it was spoken by a robot. He almost kicked himself because of how stupid he sounded.

But surprisingly, Lauren played along with his badly delivered joke.

"Very funny, Reas. Maybe you should stick to military school and leave the jokes to the professionals."

The other even rolled his eyes for a bit of exaggeration. And then he added right after.

"How's the military academy life been treating you?"

[Ah. He was being considerate of me.]—That's the first thought that entered Reas mind.

Lauren must have not wanted for this situation to continue to become awkward. Really, what was he doing when the other was trying his best like this? Because of that, his response became more natural.

"It's a bit tough, but I'm getting through it. It's a lot of discipline and hard work, but I know it'll pay off in the end."

Lauren nodded, impressed. "That's really admirable, Reas. I don't think I could handle that kind of discipline."

"What are you saying? You're an actor. You guys have to memorize lines, hit your marks, and convey emotions convincingly. That takes a lot of work and dedication too," Reas quickly said, truly meaning it. "Not to mention, you have to be really disciplined with your diet, your exercise routine, and even your sleep schedule, all to maintain the kind of image you need for your roles."

"Well, I do agree somewhat. But in some way, I'm probably also not. I mean, if I'm truly that disciplined, I wouldn't be in a lot of dating scandals."

Lauren regretted it as soon as he said that. What was he doing, mentioning his dating scandals at this moment when the atmosphere was finally easing? Did he really have a problem with his brain? He could have just agreed and then open another topic of conversation. But no, he really just had to mention his dating scandals.

  As he was 'mourning' over his own carelessness, and maybe thoughtlessness, he suddenly felt a chill around. As if there was a sudden drop in temperature. Was it about to rain? Then he looked at the sunny sky and saw no indication of that.

How strange.