Mia found herself to be in an oddly great mood whilst she sat in her office and completed her work. It could be the weather or that she was using her new stationary set, but there was just something that had her spirits uplifted.

Just as she was noting down changed in Sebastian's schedule into her work notebook, Mia heard a knock at the door.

She looked up and saw a familiar face stood at the doorway.

"Hey, Mason," Mia greeted him with a warm smile.

When Mia had started working as Sebastian's assistant, Mason was one of the first people that befriended her, since he was working on the same floor as well. He helped her understand the way the copy machine worked, gave her a little tour of the kitchen, among other things.

"You busy?" Mason asked.

"No, not really. How can I help you?" Mia asked him as he stepped into her office.

Mason walked towards the chair in front of Mia's desk and stood behind it, holding onto her back of it, as he smiled at her.

"Well, a group of us are going out for dinner tonight at this new Mexican restaurant. I-I was wondering if you wanted to come with?" He then asked her.

His question wasn't too much of a surprise to her, since she'd had lunch with him before, but that was only during work hours. She'd never met up with him after work.

Mia paused for a moment and tried to recall if she had any plans with the girls tonight, such as laundry or cooking dinner or just cleaning up the flat.

As Mia thought to herself, Mason frowned and assumed her silence was due to hesitation at his invitation.

"No pressure or anything. If you can't or just don't want to, it's okay," Mason said in a rush.

As he spoke, Mia looked up at his face, which seemed to be reddening by the second and then she realised he worried that she was going refuse.

Mia smiled at him. "I'd love to."

Mason then took, what seemed to like, a breath of relief.

"Great," he exclaimed and then cleared his throat a little, regaining his composure. "We'll meet you by the lift at the end of the day then?" Mason replied.

Mia felt a little odd about Mason's sudden excitement at her coming for the dinner, but pushed it aside thinking he just wanted her there as a friendly gesture.

"Sounds good," Mia nodded with a smile.

Despite having asked his question, Mason still looked a little nervous and Mia began to feel like there was something else he wanted to say.

She tilted her head in confusion. "Was there something else you wanted?"

Mason raised himself slightly on his toes and back to his heels and rocked a bit, whilst clutching the back of the chair within his grip.

"Actually I've been meaning to ask you..." Mason started to say, and Mia waited for him to continue, however Sebastian's voice through the intercom interrupted the pair.

"Miss Sareen," Sebastian called out.

Mia sighed deeply, before she gave Mason an apologetic smile.

"Sorry, Mason. Just give me a second," she said and he nodded at her.

She then pressed the button on the intercom.

"Yes?" She asked.

"Could you bring the Everton file?" Sebastian asked.

This was a new thing that Mia had noticed quite recently. Sebastian would be a little commanding and authoritative now, when he asked for anything. He still didn't say please but it was a lot less like a blunt order, than it was before.

"Sure," she then replied and took her finger off the intercom.

Mia then looked towards Mason. "Sorry, I have to go," she smiled apologetically, "But I'll see you for dinner tonight?"

Mason nodded and smiled at her. He didn't get to say what he wanted, but at least they were having the dinner where he could talk to her.

"Yeah, of course. See you later," he replied, and walked out of her office.

After Mia had brought Sebastian the Everton file, the two of them began to work on it together throughout the whole morning and towards lunch time.

Sebastian looked at Mia, as she neatly bundled up the loose papers and placed them within the file, a little frown coming over her face when one paper wasn't aligned with the others. Something he found himself staring at.

Just as Mia looked up at him, he cleared his throat and tried to put on a blank expression.

"So, you'll be able to sort out the notes into something proper and send it off today, yeah?" He asked, nodding towards the notes she made on her tablet. "If it's too much, I can-," he started to ramble.

Mia stopped him before he could continue and gently shook his head.

"Sebastian, it's fine. You don't have to treat me like a porcelain doll after that night," she said.

She could tell that his slightly more 'polite' behaviour only really came over that night where they were attacked. He clearly believed it was his fault, but Mia didn't really place blame on him. He made a plan to scare her, but none of what actually happened was a part of it.

Sebastian couldn't help but tense a bit, as the memory of those men hurting Mia passed through his mind.

"I just-" he began, however Mia cut him off.

"It's okay. Look at me," she smiled at him.

As she said those words, Mia watched as he gave her an indescribable look, one that seemed all too intense for her.

Sebastian couldn't help but look at her. Really look at her. He noticed the way her curls were tangled within one another and he felt this urge to run his hand through them. He saw how the frame of her glasses had a lighter shade of brown to them, than the top, the colour resembling closely to her eyes.

Mia then realised that they had held their eye contact for way too long and decided maybe she should make a move to leave.

"Okay, I'm going to head out to lunch then," she announced and got up from her seat.

Sebastian snapped out of his daze in that moment and saw Mia get up from her seat, holding the file and tablet in her hands.

Before she could leave his office, Sebastian called out her name and stood up from his chair.

"Miss Sareen?"

Mia turned around. "Yes?" She asked him curiously.

He hesitated for a moment, before finally asking her. "Do you, would you want to go out to lunch with me?".

Sebastian had been twisting within himself. He didn't exactly know whether it was right, or appropriate, to ask her what he did. However, he just wanted to get to know her a bit more, for a reason he couldn't understand himself, nor could he explain.

It was just something he wanted, that was all he knew.

Mia froze. Her lips parting in pure surprise at his unexpected question. She really didn't know what to say or do in this moment.

Every other time he seemed to offer a hand and she took it, it always ended up backfiring. Mia didn't know whether or not to give him the benefit of the doubt, or just trust her gut and believe the genuine look on his face.

Sebastian could sense the hesitation on her part and immediately realised where it was coming from.

"It's not a prank, I swear," he held up both his hands in a surrendering motion. "I just want to treat you out," he told her.

When Mia still hadn't said a word, Sebastian rambled.

"I mean, I'm feeling hungry and I'm sure you are too, so I thought we could eat together. Unless you're not hungry or would rather eat alone. There's no force. I thought it would be more...efficient."

"You want to eat lunch with me because it's efficient?" Mia asked him with a brow raised.

Sebastian's eyes widened a fraction. He never rambled, he was usually in control, and yet not he was a blabbering idiot when it came to her.

'Efficient? Might as well have said it would be less time-consuming and cost-effective, you idiot,' he thought to himself.

"I mean..." he trailed off, not entirely sure on how to continue with his words.

The blank expression on her face was not really helping either. He couldn't tell if she was offended by his words or curious.

Mia just looked at him for moment and noticed the nervous look on his face. It was a similar look he had on, when Gwen, the girl from the restaurant that day, was flirting with him.

He was unnerved once again.

This time it was because of her.

She then decided maybe she should go with her gut and hope that he was being genuine and it wasn't a prank or a lie or a plan to mess with her.

"Well, if it's your treat," she told him and cracked a smile.

Sebastian let out a deep breath. He found this odd sense of relief at her words.

Her silence was almost unbearable, however at her words, he'd buy the whole menu to get to come to lunch with him. Hell, he'd buy the whole damn restaurant.

"Of course," he then nodded.

"Okay so, let me just put this away, grab my coat, and then we'll leave?" She asked.

Sebastian just nodded, unable to get any words out.

Mia then smiled at him and walked out of his office.

After he watched her leave, Sebastian dropped down in his seat and wondered why the hell he was so nervous to ask her something so simple. As if he'd never taken anyone out to lunch before.

He'd just asked Mia out to lunch. Weirdly, the thought of it made him smile.

From the moment that they had left the office, there was a nervous silence between Sebastian and Mia, with only a few stolen glances being shared.

They made some casual small talk, however it was clear to both of them that this was just a futile attempt to fill the void. It was odd to them. They didn't entirely understand how to be nice to one another, their usual snide remarks were easier to abide by.

Sebastian didn't quite know what he should say. He had been the one to invite her to lunch and so it should be his responsibility to make conversation, yet it seemed like the ability to form a sentence was lost on him.

Every time he'd look at Mia and see her glance away to avoid being caught staring, he was lost for words.

What do you even say to the brown-eyed girl standing next to you, who seemed to cause a weird kind of tug on the strings inside you?

Meanwhile, Mia was at a loss too. She didn't understand why it was so hard to talk to Sebastian now, despite the fact that they'd spoken before.

If only he'd say something rude or mean, she'd have a retort ready at hand, yet all words seemed to have stopped at her lips, when she looked at him.

Mia tried to wrap her mind around why Sebastian looked so uncomfortable? Had she been some kind of man-eating, succubus, she would understand. But this was just her.

The two hadn't even asked each other where they would eat, only walking together, their footsteps in perfect sync.

Sebastian then decided to lead the way and ushered Mia towards a placed he loved to come to, and hoped that she would like it too.

Mia was a bit surprised when Sebastian lead her into a small, quaint little Italian restaurant. She half expected him to bring her to something more grand, like the restaurant they had lunch with Margaret.

This place was a lot different to that restaurant. It was a lot smaller in size, with a rustic feel to it. It seemed like it was more suitable to be someone's home, rather than a place to dine.

"This is a cute place," Mia smiled as sat in the seat that Sebastian held out for her, before he took the chair opposite to her.

He felt relieved to hear those words from her.

This was the kind of place that he liked to eat at, rather the more upscale placed. He was much like his father in that sense.

"The pasta here is amazing," Sebastian smiled towards her and noticed how she just looked around her.

She the turned back towards him. "I'll take your word for it."

Mia then took the menu on the table in her hers, as her eyes skimmed over all the options written within. She couldn't decided. Everything looked incredible.

"What do you recommend?" She asked Sebastian and raised her eyes from the menu, only to see that he was already looking at her.

He couldn't seem to take his eyes off her and the way her lips moved as she read the menu to herself.

"Let me order for you?" He asked without even a second thought.

When it came to Anna, he could never order for her, she always stated what she wanted, no question about it. At the time he thought it was efficient, but there was a part of him that wondered what it would be like. He'd seen his Dad order for his Mum before, and it seemed...nice.

Mia hesitated. Not because it was him, but rather because she could be picky when it came to food. She even sometimes eat the same thing again and again, when other dishes looked too out-of-the-box for her.

"Trust me?" Sebastian then asked.

Those two words left a little taken aback and she took a moment to think. 'It's just food,' she then thought.

"Fine. But if I don't like it, then I get to order something else and you're still paying for it," she said, and tried to give him an intimidating stare.

He smiled at the look she was giving him. It resembled an angry, childlike pout.

"Deal," he replied with a smile.

"This is really good," Mia said, after eating the first bite from her dish and quickly going for a second.

She had to admit it, the creamy pasta dish was amazing, the best she'd ever eaten. Now that she'd eaten this, pasta was probably never going to be the same for her anymore. This was it. The dish that all other pasta aimed to be.

Sebastian hadn't even touched his own food, instead he just watched Mia enjoy her food so happily, it gave him some unknown sense of satisfaction.

"This is so amazing," Mia then praised her food once again.

"I know," Sebastian then replied rather smugly.

Mia couldn't help but scoff at his words. "Okay, don't get too cocky."

Sebastian just smirked at her words and began to eat his own food.

This time it was Mia that was left staring at him.

The expression on his face reminded her of the Sebastian that she had known in high-school, the one that always seemed to get his way. Who would get attention from practically everyone and soaked in all the glory.

Although, he had grown up and changed from how he used to be, he hadn't lost all his ways, and that was something that scared Mia a little.

"So, why the sudden invite to lunch?" She then asked him, before taking another bite off her plate.

The question was one that Sebastian didn't really have an answer to, nor was he entirely sure on how to reply to it. He had no clue as to what possessed him to invite her to lunch. All he knew that he wanted to.

"I-uh, well, we're getting along better now, so I thought we could grab a bite to eat as well," he said, stumbling over his words. "I often went out for lunches with Sophie," he then added on, so she wouldn't find it weird.

"Feels a little odd," Mia then replied with a chuckle and instantly Sebastian shifted in his seat.

"What? Lunch with me?" He asked cautiously.

Mia smiled at him, which sort of eased his tension, until she started speaking.

"Well, yes. But also that we're getting along," she said amused. "I didn't really expect it happen at all, let alone so soon," Mia laughed.

She really hadn't expected to ever be seated in a cute little restaurant with Sebastian.

Sebastian never thought that he'd ever laugh like this in his presence. He'd heard her laugh before, but it wasn't like this. Not this genuine and carefree. However, he liked it and found himself hoping that she would laugh more.

"I can't lie, it is a little weird," Sebastian agreed. "But after everything, I want to get to know the Mia I work with," he said, with what sounded like determination.

Mia was surprised by his words.

In the past, Sebastian always kept away from her. In the school corridors, Mia could tell that he avoided or ignored her completely, as if her presence wasn't worthy of acknowledgement. She was the nerdy little sister of his friend, a social outcast at high school, there was no reason for him to know her.

Yet here was this Sebastian, so intent on getting to know her.

In all time that he had known of Mia, Sebastian didn't really know her. He never really spent the time with her. A part of him just assumed if he showed her any attention, she'd be like other girls and would just want to be near him. To avoid her ever getting attached to him and making things weird with Aaron, he stayed away from her or more like pushed her away.

He didn't want to get to know her before and now he found it amusing that he wanted to know more about her.

"So, where do we start?" Sebastian smiled at her and Mia felt corners of her lips tug upwards.

The next hour of lunch was spent with Sebastian and Mia getting to know more about each other, with him insisting on even the details she thought to be irrelevant.

Sebastian paid attention to her every word. He found out just how much she loved a cup of tea, especially with cake. She had this weird quirk, where she liked eating ice cream in cold weather. Her favourite season was Autumn, because she could wear cosy jumpers.

It bothered her when people walked too slow in front of her. She really didn't like tomatoes on anything, unless they were cooked into her food. She detested the rain, but weirdly like watching thunder and lightening from her window.

Meanwhile, Mia also listened to what Sebastian would tell her - even if he didn't actually say a lot of words.

There was already something she knew about him, that despite him having a wealthy father that could easily help him cut corners, Sebastian never let him. Instead he strived harder than others, like he had something to prove.

He loved coffee. He didn't have to say it specifically, but Mia knew that he liked hers better. If he wasn't focused on a career in business, he would travel around the world.

His favourite colour is navy blue, apparent he owns many suits in that colour. He reads quite bit, something that Mia found she shared too, however Sebastian liked non-fiction books more. He was very into his sports and played quite a few as well.

As the two finished their lunch and walked out of the restaurant, a smile was on both their face, although it barely showed on Sebastian.

"So, that wasn't as bad as I thought it'd be," Mia said with a cheeky grin, as the two began to make their way back to the office.

Sebastian glanced down at her, amusement in his eyes. "I'm going take that as a compliment," he replied.

Mia laughed and shook her head gently, as she then gave him a genuine smile.

"Thank you for lunch, Sebastian."

He looked back towards her and gave her a proper smile too. "You're welcome."

The both of them found it quite funny that they had managed to have a lunch together and made it back to the office in once piece. There was no animosity or tension, they seemed more like friends, which was odd.

Suddenly, whilst standing in the lift, Mia laughed to herself and covered her mouth, which caught Sebastian's attention.

"What's so funny?" He asked in confusion.

"Nothing, I just feel like the popular girl today," Mia said, as she smiled to herself and Sebastian's expression remained confused, as his brows furrowed together not understanding what she meant.

"Why?" He them asked her.