The Number One Star in the Interstellar Era

Chapter 835: LAUREN VISITING

”WHAT time will Lauren get here?” Astrid asked as he packed the food into heat-preserving containers. He’d put them all in his space ring later to bring them over to Casey’s place.

Today was the day he would go see Casey and finally tell him about his relationship with Wulfric. Thomas and Nicol would be there too. He’d originally planned to go alone, but when Reas came back from the military academy last night and found out, he’d asked if he and Lauren could come along.

Astrid agreed right away. He’d actually been planning to ask Reas if Lauren was free today anyway. His original plan was to talk to them after he got back from visiting Casey, over dinner, and tell them both about Wulfric then. With Lauren coming along now, it meant he only had to break the news once.

”He’s close,” Reas said. ”Probably about ten more minutes.”

As Astrid started loading the containers into his space ring, he glanced over at his brother. ”Are you sure you’re ready to tell Lauren about our complicated family?”

If Lauren came with them to Casey’s house, he would inevitably find out about their connection to the Grimaldis. And he would definitely have questions. If Reas was a good boyfriend, he would have to tell Lauren everything. It wasn’t that Astrid worried Lauren would go around spreading the information. It was more that once Lauren knew, he would be tied to their mess, and Astrid wasn’t sure that was something Reas had fully thought through.

Unlike Wulfric, who was equipped to handle the Lancasters if things went south, Lauren was just an ordinary citizen. If things blew up, he could easily get caught in the crossfire.

Reas looked at Astrid from where he sat. He understood what his brother was getting at. He’d already thought about it before making this decision. He knew how risky it could be, but he also felt like keeping such a big part of himself from Lauren would make their relationship feel hollow. So even with the possible dangers, he’d still chosen to go through with this.

Of course, he wasn’t going to let anything happen to Lauren. If it came down to it, he’d ask the Grimaldis for help. He’d even swallow his pride and go to the general if he had to.

”I’m not sure if I’m ready,” Reas said in a quiet but firm voice. ”But I know I’m going to tell him anyway.”

Astrid smiled. ”Then I support your decision.”

~~~

Just as Reas had said, Lauren arrived at Astrid’s apartment ten minutes later. He parked his car on the rooftop, following the permission Astrid had arranged. At first he wondered how Astrid managed that, since visitors weren’t allowed to park there. But then he remembered who owned the building, and it all made sense.

Riding the elevator down to Astrid’s floor, Lauren tugged his cap lower over his face. He knew the residents here valued their privacy, so they probably wouldn’t pay him much attention even if they saw him. But he still wanted to be careful. The last thing he needed was for someone to start a rumor that he was visiting Astrid’s apartment, which would definitely lead to dating speculation. Not that he cared, and he was sure Astrid and Reas wouldn’t either. But he wasn’t so sure a certain prince would feel the same way.

Standing in front of Astrid’s apartment, he pressed the doorbell. The door opened quickly, and when he saw who was on the other side, a smile immediately spread across his face.

”Hey,” he said, smiling warmly at Reas.

Instead of greeting him, Reas reached out and pulled him inside. The door clicked shut behind them, and before Lauren could say anything, Reas wrapped his arms around him in a tight hug. Lauren froze for a second, surprised by the sudden action, but he quickly melted into the embrace and hugged him back.

”I missed you, baby,” Reas murmured against Lauren’s neck.

Lauren let out a soft laugh, even as warmth spread across his cheeks. No matter how many times Reas called him baby, it still made his stomach flip. ”Me too,” he said quietly.

Reas pulled back just enough to look at Lauren, his hands still resting on his waist. He tilted his head slightly, and Lauren knew exactly what he was thinking. So he leaned in and waited for the kiss. Reas let out a quiet chuckle at how eager he looked, and was just about to close the gap between them when someone cleared his throat behind them.

At the sound, Lauren jerked back, or tried to, but Reas held him in place. Lauren shot him a glare, and Reas just raised an eyebrow in return. Lauren shook his head and peered over Reas’s shoulder to find Astrid watching them with an amused look on his face.

”I’m happy for you two, really,” Astrid said, a teasing smile on his face. ”But maybe keep the public display of affection to a minimum while I’m still in the room.”

Despite himself, Lauren felt his face heat up even more. He finally managed to slip out of Reas’s hold and quickly walked over to where Astrid stood, putting some distance between himself and his boyfriend before Reas could pull him back again.

He gave Astrid a quick hug. ”It’s been a while. I miss you, Aster. And congratulations on the movie, by the way. I’m sure it’ll be part of the weekly box office rankings.”

Astrid smiled. ”Thank you. I really hope it does.”

Lauren was confident it would, judging by how well the movie had been doing since its release five days ago.

”By the way, where are we going today?” he asked. ”Reas didn’t tell me when he invited me today. He just said the three of us will go somewhere.”

Astrid looked at Reas, his expression clearly asking, ’You didn’t tell him?’ Reas just shrugged in response.

”We’re going to our uncle’s house,” Reas said simply.

Lauren blinked, unsure if he’d heard correctly. But one look at Reas’s face told him he had. ”Your what?”