Chapter Sixteen
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I knocked on the door shakily, mentally preparing myself before Trinity opened the door. This was a new feeling for me, a sense of anxiety and nervousness meeting someone, especially a girl at that.
It's usually the other way around, where a girl would be nervous to even step and approach me.

This girl really is something.

Hearing footsteps approach the door, my breath hitched. The door slowly unlocked and began to open.

"Scar, did you forget your mail key again? Here you-" Trinity paused and froze, noticing me instead of Scarlet at the doorway. Her eyes traveled to the flowers briefly before returning back to look at my face.

"Hey." I said softly. She still was stunned as she gave me no response, so I cleared my throat. "Can I come in?"

Waking from her daze, she nodded, opening the door wider to let me in. Stepping inside, I looked inside the place. In the living room, there were chocolate brown couches with a brown marble coffee table in the middle, a chestnut bookshelf with different pictures and books adorning it, a wall mounted flat screen television, and various potted plants in the corners. The kitchen was on the left and the dining table was in front of the kitchen, all pieces matching the living room. Overall, the atmosphere had a cozy feel to it.

I handed her the bouquet with a soft smile. "Here, this is for you. Read the card and keep it to yourself, please."

She nodded, slightly smirking. "I will, thanks. Take a seat on the couch. Do you want anything to drink?"

"Water, if possible?"

"Sure, give me a few." She nodded before walking into the kitchen. I watched as she took out the envelope before gathering a vase filled of water for the flowers, noticing a small smile form on her face as she placed the bouquet inside. She then opened her fridge to grab a water bottle.

She quickly returned, handing me the bottle before taking a seat on the adjacent couch. "So...what brings you here?"

"I want to apologize about yesterday."

She raised an eyebrow. "Which part exactly? The stubbornness or..."

I sighed, looking down at my hands. "Everything. The stubbornness and my reaction towards you. It was uncalled for, and you didn't deserve it. I'm sorry."

"I forgive you."

My head snapped back up in surprise as I looked at her. She had her eyes closed and a soft smile as she continued to speak. "You were right, I allowed you three questions to ask me. That didn't warrant an invitation for me to throw a question back at you. So, I was the one at fault. There's no reason for you to apologize to me."

"That's not true, I shouldn't have sn-"

She held her hand up to stop me from finishing my statement. "Listen, I appreciate the kind gesture you did by showing up to clear the air. It helps, more than you know. However, this is a contractual agreement, and I would hate to have this little situation ruin my chances of securing a stable job with you and the agency."

I was literally stunned. The girl sitting in front of me continued to show me how different she truly was.
Not only was she offering me unwarranted forgiveness, but she was actually taking the blame for the situation I created. She also wasn't considering quitting, as she had her own goals in mind.

At first, I specifically requested a professional to work with. Now, I'm truly seeing what a professional is, and I don't know how to react.

Clearing my throat, I looked at her. "I am now offering you the same grace: three questions."

Her eyes opened wide and she stared at me in confusion. "What?"

"Three questions. Ask anything you want. I want it to be fair." I said, leaning back into the couch.

"You don't have to do that, Apollo..." She murmured, looking away to her hands as she fiddled with her fingers.

"I want to."

She looked back up at me and I held her gaze against my own. In that moment, it felt as though time stopped and nothing else existed. Her siren eyes pierced into my own, and I could see a sense of vulnerability behind them, something I didn't notice before in our previous encounters.

She soon broke the silence and the shared stare, clearing her throat. "Can I get back to you on that?"

I chuckled. "Sure, and by the way, I'm still not done apologizing."

"What do you mean? I already told you that you-"

Now, it was my turn to stop her from speaking. "Yes, I heard you loud and clear. That doesn't mean I actually accept you taking the blame. So, on top of the three free questions, I have something else to offer. It'll happen when you stop by my house tomorrow, okay?"

This time she smiled, it was a smile that took my breath away. Her pearly white teeth and her distinctive dimples were apparent, and I mentally made a note to make her smile like that again.

"Alright, if you say so." She said grinning.

Looking at my watch, I smirked as I stood up. "Scarlet should be back now, so that's my cue to leave."

Her face went into shock, but she rolled her eyes, shaking her head. "Of course she was in on this."
She muttered to herself as she stood up.

She walked me to the door and smirked. "Thank you for stopping by, but I do have something to tell you."

I raised an eyebrow and she sighed. "I'm not sure if you saw, but, the news had a rumor about you. It was saying something about you in a biker gang."

"Ah, yeah. I saw it, but it's not true."

"I know. I examined one of the photos they had of you and I noticed it was photoshopped. So, I sent it to Michael as proof." She said proudly.

This girl...

"That wasn't necessary, you know." I said, rubbing the back of my neck awkwardly.

She grinned that beautiful grin again at me. "I know, I just wanted to. I'm on your side, no matter what. Okay?"

My heart clenched.

"Thanks..." I said softly, not trusting my voice to speak any louder.

Suddenly, there was three loud knocks on the door, followed by some giggles.

"Aye! Apollo! You better not have made things worse, or you are dead, you hear me!" Axel shouted outside the door.

Trinity rolled her eyes. "He was in on this too?" She whisper-shouted to me, rolling her eyes dramatically.

I nodded sheepishly and whispered. "Sorry."

Trinity sighed, opening the door to reveal Scarlet and Axel standing there with hopeful eyes. Scarlet spoke up first. "Everything good?"

Trinity nodded. "Yes, and by the way, you and I are going to have a little chat."

"Well, then. Thanks Scarlet, see you later." I said, stepping outside and dragging Axel, against his dramatic protests, with me back to the car. Trinity dragged Scarlet inside the apartment and slammed the door shut.

Axel unlocked the car and we both entered inside, sitting in silence. Both of us settling inside.

"So...how did it go?" He asked.

"Honestly? It didn't go the way I expected."

"Fuck.." he muttered. "What happened?"

I sighed, leaning back in the passenger's seat. "She took the blame. She actually took the blame. On top of that, she said that she wouldn't let something like that prevent her from continuing to work with me..."

Axel gasped. "Are you serious?"

"Dead serious. However, I told her that I didn't accept her taking the blame, and told her that there's more to my apology." I said, slightly smirking.

"Smooth, just smooth." Axel chuckled, shaking his head as he started the car.

"That's not even the best part."

He raised an eyebrow while backing out of the parking space. "There's more?"

I nodded. "She mentioned that rumor that was on the news, the one about me being apart of a biker gang or whatever. She told me that she found the photo to be photoshopped and sent the error to Michael as proof."

"Wow... she didn't have to do that." He said softly, processing the information.

"The best part is this...she told me she was on my side...no matter what." I said smiling.

He snapped his head to me in surprise, and my smile never faltered.

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