Akira woke up the next morning to the brightness of sunlight filtering through the large windows. The sight was unusual because she rarely slept in. She would always be up and about in the morning before the sun came up.

Of course, the prerequisite was a relatively early night.

She found that she was cuddled up to something warm and comfortable. She moved closer to her human pillow and concealed her bleary eyes from the harsh sunlight. She was too tired to go anywhere. She just wanted to keep sleeping.

Kaito muffled his laughter as he looked at pouting Akira, snuggling into his side as if she wanted to burrow into his chest. He shifted a little to pull her partially onto the top of his body. Akira made a muffled protest at the movement before slinging her leg and arm over his body like he was a bolster.

Kaito wanted to tease her a little, but he resisted since she appeared too tired. He looked at her with pure male satisfaction, cataloguing everything about her, from the slightly auburn tinge of her ruffled hair to the marks he left on her neck.

He caressed her back gently and soothingly, enjoying the quiet and the peace of the lovely morning. Before he knew it, he fell asleep once again.

When Akira woke up again, it was with startling suddenness. Kaito was no longer in bed, and she was holding the red panda plushie while sprawled out on the bed. She groaned as she realised that she had more than overslept.

She turned her head and found her bedside clock. It was almost noon. She left the bed and took a hot shower to alleviate her grogginess and soothe her aching muscles. Once she dressed up and felt human again, she left the bedroom.

"Good morning this afternoon, sleepyhead," Kaito said cheerfully from the kitchen as she made an entrance into the living room.

"Whose fault is it?" She pouted.

"You can only blame yourself for lacking stamina." Kaito laughed wickedly.

Akira gritted her teeth as she looked at the thick-faced person.

"My stamina is fine. You are just a monster." She rolled her eyes.

"Perhaps we should train together," Kaito said.

Akira's face reddened at the suggestion.

"What are you thinking in that naughty mind?" Kaito laughed as he offered her a cup of tea. "I meant you should join me in my workout regimen."

Akira took a sip of the green tea to calm her annoyance down. The tea was quite delicious, but that was expected because Kaito saw her making her tea at Blue Mountain Park. She looked at Kaito, who appeared refreshed in different clothes from those he wore the previous night.

"Where did you get those clothes?" She asked.

Kaito looked at her slyly. "Didn't I tell you? I am your neighbour."

"Oh," Akira responded before sprawling herself on the couch.

Kaito went to the kitchen and brought back two trays with a simple breakfast. The plate had two slices of toasted bread, two eggs, some strips of bacon and two sausages. There was also a bowl of fruit salad.

"Aren't you going to ask?" His eyes were probing.

"I assume you stalked me and found out where I got a house and bought one in the same place," Akira said before picking a slice of bacon. "This bacon is pretty good."

"Enjoy it. This is the full extent of my culinary capabilities." He replied.

The two of them continued eating in companionable silence. But in his heart, Kaito was a little worried about Akira's disinterest in his actions. She did not seem to be curious about the reason he followed her or even worry about his stalking.

The thought made him a little unsettled. He could not help but wonder if the lack of concern was an indication that she did not care enough about him.

The feeling of insecurity gnawed at him.

He had surrendered his heart to Akira and was willing to give up all his secrets to her. However, she refused to ask about him. She seemed to be keeping him at a distance.

He did not doubt that her feelings towards him were true, but she probably did not have faith in their relationship. He had the impression that one foot was outside the door. And she would leave him with the slightest provocation.

The thought made him unsettled and caused a loss of appetite.

"Are you feeling alright?" Akira asked as she noticed a little sign of discomfort in Kaito.

"Will you abandon me?" He asked.

The question sounded childish and stupid, so Akira was going to retort as usual. However, she noticed the intensity with which Kaito was looking at her. She stopped eating and faced him.

"Why are you asking?"

"You don't seem curious about me. I am afraid that you will not think of me if I am not with you." He responded with pursed lips.

"Are you planning on leaving me?" She asked, her eyes glinting with something.

"I want to stick to you every day until you get sick of me. But let's be realistic. Bad things happen." He leaned back.

Akira was silent as she thought about his words. She wanted to be with Kaito without reservation, but she was also scared of abandonment. She did not like to think of the day that he might get tired of her and dump her without looking back.

She could not bear the thought or that feeling. Therefore, she wanted to be with him as much as she could and live in the moment so she would not have regrets.

But he was right. She was being unfair by having one foot outside the door. He was always talking about the future, but she had never responded to his suggestion.

Furthermore, she could not assume that life would always be stable as it was now. Deep within, she was worried that his high-risk life would also take him away from her. He was, after all, a dangerous assassin with a lot of enemies.

"What do you propose?" She asked.

"An oath of trust." Kaito leaned close to her. "Believe in me, and I will believe in you."

"That's vague. There is no actionable element in it. Do you want me to sit idle if I don't hear from you for months? What if something happens to you?" Akira said meaningfully.

"Alright, I will make arrangements and give you a contact person to help you if something unexpected happens to me. But nothing can happen to me." Kaito said cockily.

Akira rolled her eyes.

"What about you?" He asked.

"What about me?"

"What if you disappear and I can't find you?"

"Don't be dramatic. I live a perfectly safe life."

"Don't brush it off. You should know Hu Lei disappeared for a couple of years. I thought she was laying low after offending someone. It turns out she was imprisoned in Antarctica. Zhong Feng turned the world upside down before he found her." Kaito said.

Antarctica… The word seemed to trigger something forgotten in Akira, but it was not clear.

"Akira…" Kaito whined.

"Fine, fine." She shook her head. "I will think of something."

Kaito stood up and pulled her from the chair. "Now that we have discussed administrative issues, let's do something a little more fun."

Akira shrieked as she was lifted into his arms. "My breakfast!"