Twitch & Tease

Chapter 3 — The Roommate Q&A

***

I lowered my eyes to my plate, suddenly feeling a little embarrassed.

"I'm not actually that good at cooking," I admitted with a shy smile. "And... this is my first time cooking for someone."

Lucas froze with his fork halfway to his mouth.

His eyes widened as he looked from the food to me.

"Wait. Seriously?"

I nodded.

A soft, amused laugh escaped him as he slowly lowered his fork.

"No way. You're telling me I'm your first guinea pig?"

He shook his head in disbelief, a grin spreading across his face.

"For a first attempt, you're doing dangerously well. If this is you being 'not that good,' I'm genuinely scared of what happens when you actually try."

I laughed quietly.

Lucas took another bite, this time deliberately savoring it. When he looked back at me, there was something different in his expression.

Curiosity.

Maybe even a little admiration.

The fact that I'd spent my first day moving boxes and still decided to cook for him clearly hadn't gone unnoticed.

"I'm honored, really," he said. "Most people would've just pointed me toward the nearest delivery app."

He smiled.

"It's actually really nice of you, Lia. Especially since you're the one who spent the entire day moving."

I shrugged.

"It wasn't a big deal."

"It was to me."

The words came out naturally.

For a second, neither of us said anything.

Then his phone buzzed against the table again.

The vibration broke the quiet moment.

Lucas glanced down at the dark screen before looking back at me. He didn't pick it up.

Instead, he leaned back in his chair.

"You know, my followers are probably going to be asking about you for the next week."

I raised an eyebrow.

"Really?"

"Oh, absolutely."

He laughed.

"They're nosy. Give them one second of unexplained information and suddenly they're detectives."

I smiled.

"But don't worry. I won't let them bother you."

He picked up his fork again.

"Although, since I'm officially the first person to taste your cooking..."

A mischievous grin appeared on his face.

"Does that mean I get to give you an official rating for your portfolio?"

I laughed.

"Nah. That's not necessary."

I paused before adding casually,

"And about your followers asking about me... I'm fine with appearing on your livestream."

Lucas nearly choked on his drink.

He quickly set his glass down with a sharp clink, staring at me in disbelief.

"Wait."

He blinked.

"You're serious?"

I nodded.

"You'd actually be okay with going on camera?"

His expression was somewhere between surprise and amusement.

"Most people would be terrified of my chat. They're like a pack of hyperactive puppies..."

He paused.

"...with way more opinions."

I laughed.

Lucas let out a nervous, breathless chuckle as his mind seemed to race ahead.

His followers would absolutely lose their minds if I appeared on his stream.

Even for five minutes.

He reached for his phone, finally picking it up to silence the persistent notifications.

The screen immediately lit up with messages from Céline.

His thumb hovered over the notifications for a moment.

Then he locked the phone again.

"I mean, I won't throw you into the lion's den if you're not comfortable with it," he said. "But if you're actually okay with it..."

He leaned forward slightly.

"Maybe we could do a roommate Q&A or something. Something light."

His grin returned.

"That way, they'll stop spending every stream trying to catch a glimpse of your shadow in the background."

I laughed.

"That sounds ridiculous."

"You have no idea."

Lucas shook his head.

"They'll probably make an entire compilation of every time you've walked past the camera."

He paused.

Then his expression became slightly more serious.

"Although..."

He rubbed the back of his neck.

"Just a heads-up. My girlfriend, Céline, is pretty active in the influencer scene."

His tone became awkward.

"If you show up on my stream, it'll probably end up on her radar."

He gave a small shrug.

"She's cool. Mostly."

I noticed the hesitation in his voice.

"But things can get a little... intense when the internet starts shipping people for no reason."

He looked at me carefully, almost as though he were waiting to see how I'd react.

And then it hit me.

I completely forgot.

Lucas had a girlfriend.

"Oh!"

I immediately straightened in my chair.

"Sorry. I totally forgot that you have a girlfriend."

My cheeks warmed.

"How insensitive of me..."

I quickly began gathering the plates.

"Let's just forget what I said earlier. I'm full anyway. I'll clean the table if you're done."

The atmosphere changed instantly.

Lucas's smile disappeared.

"Lia—wait."

I continued reaching for the plates.

"Hey, stop."

His hand moved toward mine, hovering just above it before he pulled back.

I looked at him.

His expression was genuinely apologetic.

"You're not being insensitive. Seriously."

He shook his head.

"I'm the one who brought it up. You didn't do anything wrong."

I hesitated.

Lucas looked down at his untouched plate before meeting my eyes again.

"And don't take back what you said."

His voice softened.

"I actually think it would be fun to have you on the stream."

I stayed quiet.

"I just..." He exhaled slowly. "I've spent the last two years having to explain every little thing I do to thousands of people."

His eyes briefly flicked toward his phone.

"I didn't want you getting caught in the middle of all that drama."

He looked back at me.

"But if you're comfortable with it, I'd love for you to be part of the stream."

A small smile appeared on his face.

"It's your home now, too."

I didn't know what to say to that.

Lucas leaned back in his chair.

"And sit down."

His tone became playful again.

"You cooked. I clean. That was the deal, remember?"

He pointed toward my chair.

"I don't want the 'warm roommate' turning into the 'annoyed roommate' on night one just because I'm a bit of a klutz with words."

I stared at him for a moment.

Then I quietly sat back down.

"Hmm."

Lucas smiled.

"Good."

He stood and began collecting the plates.

As he walked toward the kitchen, his phone buzzed again on the table.

Neither of us looked at it.

But this time, I couldn't help wondering what Céline had been trying to tell him.

And more importantly...

Why did Lucas seem so reluctant to answer her?