The distance was still there.
Cold. Clean. Controlled.
Exactly how Riyana wanted it.
And then—
It broke.
"Riyana, can you check this?"
She looked up.
It wasn't Bosco.
It was someone else.
A new client associate—John.
He stood beside her desk, holding a file, a casual smile on his face.
Riyana nodded. "Yeah, give it."
She leaned slightly toward him as he placed the file on her desk.
Normal.
Professional.
Except—
It didn't look that way from across the room.
Bosco's gaze lifted from his laptop.
Paused.
Stayed.
John was still talking.
Riyana responded—short, but not distant.
Not like she had been with Bosco.
Not like that.
Something tightened in his jaw.
"Yeah, that makes sense," John said, leaning a little closer. "You explain it better than most people here."
Riyana didn't react much. "It's basic."
"Still," he smiled. "Not everyone makes it look that easy."
From afar—
It looked easy.
Comfortable.
Natural.
Bosco shut his laptop.
A little harder than necessary.
He stood up.
Walked out of his cabin.
"Riyana."
His voice cut through the space.
She looked up immediately.
"Yes, sir."
That word again.
Bosco's eyes flickered briefly toward John.
Then back to her.
"Come here."
Riyana paused for half a second.
Then stood up.
Walked toward him.
John stepped back slightly, sensing the shift.
"I'll catch you later," he said lightly.
Riyana nodded. "Yeah."
Bosco didn't wait.
He turned and walked into his cabin.
Riyana followed.
The door closed.
Silence.
She stood near the desk, composed. "Yes?"
Bosco turned to face her.
His expression wasn't calm this time.
Not fully.
"What was that?"
Riyana frowned slightly. "What?"
"That," he repeated, sharper now. "Out there."
Her confusion turned into mild irritation. "I was working."
"With him?"
She blinked.
"What does that mean?"
Bosco stepped a little closer.
Not aggressively.
But enough to shift the space between them.
"You seem very… comfortable."
There it was.
Riyana's expression changed.
Slightly.
"I was just explaining the file."
"Like that?"
Her brows furrowed. "Like what?"
"Like you don't do with me."
The words landed.
Direct.
Unfiltered.
Riyana let out a short breath. "Are you serious right now?"
"Answer the question."
"There is no question," she said, her tone sharpening. "You asked me to keep things professional. That's what I'm doing."
"With me," he said.
A pause.
"And not with others?" he added.
That hit something.
Riyana straightened. "Don't twist this."
"I'm not twisting anything."
"You are," she snapped. "You don't get to decide how I talk to other people."
Bosco's jaw tightened.
"I'm not deciding. I'm noticing."
"Then stop noticing," she shot back. "It's none of your concern."
Silence.
That line—
That one line—
Shifted everything.
Bosco stepped closer.
This time—
Closer than before.
"Not my concern?" he repeated, lower now.
Riyana didn't move.
Didn't step back.
Didn't break eye contact.
"No."
The word came out steady.
But her heartbeat—
Wasn't.
"Then what is it?" he asked.
"What is what?"
"This," he gestured between them again. "Because yesterday it wasn't nothing."
Her breath caught.
Just for a second.
"And today," he continued, his voice quieter but more intense, "you act like it never existed."
"That's because it shouldn't."
The answer came fast.
Defensive.
Bosco's eyes darkened slightly.
"And him?" he asked suddenly. "Does that 'shouldn't exist' rule apply there too?"
Riyana stared at him.
Now clearly annoyed.
"This is ridiculous."
"Is it?"
"Yes," she said firmly. "You're overreacting."
A beat.
"Am I?"
He stepped even closer.
Now—
There was barely any space between them.
Riyana felt it.
The shift.
The tension.
The air getting heavier.
"If it's nothing," he said, his voice low now, "then why does it bother me?"
The question wasn't meant to be said out loud.
But it was.
And it changed everything.
Riyana froze.
Because that—
That wasn't just irritation anymore.
"Bosco—"
She didn't get to finish.
Because in the next moment—
He closed the distance.
And kissed her.
It wasn't soft.
It wasn't planned.
It wasn't gentle.
It was sudden.
Confused.
Charged with everything neither of them had said.
Riyana's mind went blank.
Completely.
For a second—
She didn't react.
Didn't move.
Didn't think.
Just felt it.
Then—
Reality hit.
She pushed him back.
Hard.
"What are you doing?!" her voice came out breathless, shaken.
Bosco stepped back immediately.
Like the realization hit him at the same time.
Silence crashed into the room.
Heavy.
Loud.
Unavoidable.
Riyana's chest rose and fell quickly.
Her eyes wide.
Confused.
Angry.
Something else.
"You don't get to do that," she said, her voice unsteady now. "You don't just—"
She stopped.
Because she couldn't even finish the sentence.
Bosco ran a hand through his hair, exhaling sharply.
"I know."
But his voice didn't sound completely apologetic.
Just… conflicted.
"That wasn't—" he started, then stopped.
Because he didn't have a clean explanation either.
Riyana shook her head, stepping back again.
Creating distance.
Needing it.
"This is exactly what I didn't want," she said.
Her words hit harder than the push.
"Exactly this."
Bosco looked at her.
Really looked.
And for the first time—
He understood something.
Not everything.
But enough.
"This is what you were avoiding," he said quietly.
Riyana didn't answer.
Because she couldn't deny it.
Her silence was enough.
She turned quickly and walked to the door.
But just before opening it—
She stopped.
Without turning back, she said—
"Don't do that again."
And then she left.
The door closed.
This time—
It didn't feel controlled.
Inside the cabin, Bosco stood still.
His thoughts louder than ever.
The kiss replayed once.
Twice.
Not just the action—
But her reaction.
This is exactly what I didn't want.
His jaw tightened slightly.
Because now—
It wasn't just confusion anymore.
Now—
There was something real between them.
And neither of them knew what to do with it.