Darien was lost for words. It really had been Zach all along. The intern pulled off the mask and held it up to take a closer look at it. Darien waited for him to speak. “I’ve worn a mask exactly like this one before,” he said. That admission had more to Darien’s ironclad certainty that his masked dancing partner was Zach. He just didn’t know how to ask why Zach had never contacted him again two years ago. “I wore it to a masked ball two years ago,” Zach continued. “I never went to the masked ball ever again after that.” “Why is that?” Darien asked softly. Zach kept his gaze on the mask in his hands. Darien impatiently waited for him to answer. “It’s hard to admit this. I met another man there and I might just have snogged him. I wasn’t drunk, I was just feeling weirdly brave,” Zach explained. “We got along very well and we were going to meet again. He left in a hurry and gave me his number.” Everything had fallen into place. He

Zach realised too late that he was outmatched by a group of women. In his confusion he ran down a street with a dead end and when he turned to find another route, they were already blocking it. He felt the blood dripping down his face and realised that his face had sustained a cut when he had been slapped.The purple haired woman approached him and he ducked past her. This was one of the only times his short height was an advantage.Another of the women in the group caught his wrist which he managed to shake free. He ran back the way he had come, his breath coming in short panicked bursts. This time there was another person walking on the pavement a short distance away which was a relieving sight. There was no way they would attack him with someone else present.Then someone grabbed his arm and he saw the purple headed woman had caught up to him. He cried out in pain from her tight grip.She was intent on not letting him escape.A boot came flying

Darien didn’t like the idea of telling Zach the truth about the masked ball. It would ruin the balance of their current relationship and would make Zach feel guilty about forgetting him. Despite that, he knew it was the right thing to do. It was just going to take a lot of courage to be able to tell him. He noticed that Emilia hadn’t mentioned being open about his romantic feelings for Zach. Perhaps she didn’t think they were a good fit. “Everything you said is valid. I might just not be able to do the last one immediately,” he said. Emilia didn’t look disappointed. It seemed like she had been expecting him to say that. “That’s fine. The other things are more of a priority.” Darien had an important request for her. “Could we trade phone numbers in case we need to contact each other?” Emilia wordlessly took her phone out and he read out his phone number. He noted hers as well and tucked his phone back in his pocket.

Zach took a seat at his desk in the erotica department feeling lighter. He had testified at the police station the afternoon before and Emilia had also provided a witness statement. He was also on his way to getting over Darien.Things were looking up. He had gone out to a restaurant the night before with Emilia and her boyfriend. It was different going somewhere without Darien and not worrying about being recognised by the wrong people. It was much more relaxing.His work tasks were getting easier which showed he had improved greatly. That was something to be happy about.“I’ve put the job posting up!” Becca exclaimed excitedly from her desk. “I really hope people want to work in this department.”Zach couldn’t comment on that as he hadn’t applied for the internship knowing it was going to be in the erotica department.“Of course, they’ll want to work here, I’m here,” Meghan scoffed

Zach panicked when he realised what he had just let slip. He thought he was nearly over Darien, now it sounded like he had been pining for him.“I miss you too,” Darien replied after a few seconds. “You really have made a difference to my life and it’s sad to know it’s my fault that we can’t go anywhere together.”The intern breathed a sigh of relief. Darien hadn’t noticed how pitiful he had sounded and felt the same way.“It’s sad,” he agreed. “I feel like I’m ready to meet with you again soon. It will have to be your house though.”Sparks would definitely fly between Emilia and Darien if they saw each other again and not for romantic reasons. They really should never meet again.“I’m happy to meet with you again,” Darien said quickly. “Please don’t force yourself to if you don’t want to. It is my fault that you were attacked tha