Stranger in my Ass-Chapter 257

Olivia’s POV

The rest of the week in Tokyo was everything I’d hoped for and more.

Kira and I finally got our best friend time, even if it came with Kennedy and Gabriel attached. We explored every corner of the city - from the serene temples to the quiet tea ceremonies to karaoke bars where we sang terrible renditions of American pop songs.

But Kira was hovering.

Constantly.

When we went to a trampoline park and I ran toward the first platform, Kira’s hand shot out to grab my arm.

"Careful," she hissed in my ear, her eyes darting to make sure Kennedy and Gabriel weren’t paying attention. "The baby."

"It’s just trampolines..."

"Trampolines are high impact! What if you fall? What if you land wrong?" Her whisper was urgent. "Sit this one out. Please."

I ended up watching from the sidelines while everyone else bounced around like children.

At the Robot Restaurant - a wild, neon-lit spectacle of dancing robots and laser shows - when I tried to get up and dance along with the performers, Kira pulled me back down.

"Too much jumping," she whispered. "The baby doesn’t need all that jostling."

"The baby is the size of a poppy seed..."

"Still!"

When we went bungee jumping - well, when the guys went bungee jumping - Kira literally stood in front of me like a human shield when the instructor tried to hand me a harness.

"She’s not jumping," Kira announced firmly.

"But I want to..."

"Nope. Not happening. Find another thrill."

Gabriel looked confused. "Since when are you afraid of heights, Liv?"

"Since now," Kira answered for me. "She just discovered it. Terrible vertigo. Very sad. Moving on."

I glared at her, but she just smiled sweetly and linked her arm through mine, keeping me safely on the ground.

It was infuriating and touching in equal measure.

Every risky activity got vetoed. Every adventurous food got scrutinized ("Is that raw fish? No raw fish for you. Listeria risk."). Every late night got cut short ("You need rest. The baby needs rest.").

By the end of the week, I was simultaneously annoyed at being treated like fragile glass and deeply grateful to have someone who cared that much.

*****

Finally, it was time to go home.

We all booked flights back to New York - Kira and I sitting together, Kennedy and Gabriel in the row behind us.

Once we were settled and the plane took off, Kira leaned close and whispered, "I can’t believe I’m going to be a godmother this young."

I grinned. "Who says you’re the godmother? I haven’t given that role to anyone yet."

Kira’s head whipped toward me, her eyes narrowed in a death stare. "You’re joking. Right?"

"I’m serious. I haven’t thought about who to give that role to just yet. It’s a big responsibility."

"Olivia Hopton." Her voice was dangerously quiet. "Are there any other friends in your life? Who could you possibly be planning to give that role to if not me?"

"Julian," I said thoughtfully. "Julian would make a great godmother. Or godfather. Whatever gender works."

Kira actually stood up, her seat belt straining. "Tell me you’re joking right now, Liv. Tell me, or I swear to God I’ll throw you off this plane myself."

"Ma’am, please sit down," a flight attendant called from the galley.

I was laughing so hard I could barely breathe. "Sit down! I’m joking! I’m kidding!"

"Better be!" Kira sat but continued glaring at me. "Better be joking. Because I’m not sharing my godmother duties with anyone. Julian can wait for the next baby."

"The next baby? I haven’t even had this one yet!"

"Doesn’t matter. This one’s mine. I’m calling dibs right now."

"You can’t call dibs on godmother rights..."

"I just did. It’s official now."

We laughed a bit loudly, earning confused looks from Kennedy and Gabriel behind us.

The rest of the flight passed in happy whispers and planning.

"We need to move to a bigger apartment," Kira said, scrolling through rental listings on her phone. "After your first few months working for Maxwell. We’ll need space for the baby. A nursery. Maybe a small yard if we can afford it."

"That sounds amazing."

"And we’ll need to run scans. Find out the gender. Start buying things..."

"Actually," I interrupted, "I don’t want to know the gender."

Kira looked up from her phone. "What? Why not?"

"I want to be surprised. Old-fashioned, I know, but there are so few real surprises in life. I want to experience the moment when they say ’it’s a boy’ or ’it’s a girl’ without knowing beforehand."

"That’s actually really sweet." Kira smiled. "Okay, no gender reveal. But how are we supposed to buy things? Everything is pink or blue nowadays."

"We’ll just buy unisex clothes. Yellows, greens, whites. It’ll be fine."

"Hmm. We’ll make it work." She went back to scrolling. "Oh! We need a temporary name for the baby!"

"A temporary name?"

"Yeah! Like a nickname. We can’t just call them ’the baby’ for nine months. That’s so impersonal."

I considered this. "Okay. What are you thinking?"

We threw names back and forth. Peanut. Bean. Nugget. Tiny. Junior.

"Too boring," Kira declared. "We need something that represents us. Something that shows this baby is going to have the coolest, most fun godmother and mother in existence."

"How about Chaos?" I suggested. "Because that’s what this baby is going to bring into my life."

"I love it, but we can do better." Kira’s eyes lit up. "Rebel. We’re calling the baby Rebel."

"Rebel?"

"Think about it. This baby was conceived in secret. You don’t know who the father is. You’re about to be a single mom working for a man who might be the father. You’re rebelling against every expectation." She grinned. "Rebel Hopton. It’s perfect."

I laughed. "It’s completely unhinged."

"Exactly. Which is perfect for a baby being raised by us."

"Rebel it is, then." I placed my hand on my still-flat stomach. "Hey there, Rebel. We’re going to have so many adventures."

******

When we landed in New York, Kennedy immediately pulled Kira into a long goodbye kiss.

"I’ll come pick you up tomorrow," he said, his forehead pressed to hers. "Spend the day with me? Make up for lost time?"

"I’d love that."

Gabriel hugged me fondly, lingering just a bit longer than necessary. "Thank you for an amazing trip. Tokyo was incredible."

"It really was. Thank you for being such a great travel companion."

"Can we meet up soon? Maybe dinner this week?"

"Yeah, we’ll plan toward it. Text me some dates that work for you."

We said our final goodbyes and grabbed a taxi back to our apartment.

During the ride, reality started setting in.

"I’m resuming work tomorrow," I said, watching the city blur past the window. "Feels surreal."

"You’re going to be amazing." Kira squeezed my hand.

"What about you? What’s your plan now that you’re not working for Damien?"

"I don’t know yet." She sighed. "I’ll figure something out. Maybe look for security work that doesn’t require me to pretend to be a man. Though my resume is going to look weird. ’Bodyguard for one month. Left position due to identity crisis.’"

"You’ll find something. You’re brilliant and capable. Someone will see that."

"I hope so."

We laced our fingers together. "Whatever happens, we’ve got each other. Always."

"Always," she agreed.

When we arrived at our apartment building, Kira grabbed her bags and bounded up the stairs.

"Wait!" I called after her. "Let me bring my bags too..."

"I’ve got them!" She was already heading back down.

"Kira, I can carry my own..."

She turned to the taxi driver, who was waiting to be paid. "Sir, could you please help bring her bags upstairs? She’s pregnant."

The driver’s face lit up. "Oh! Congratulations!" He immediately got out and grabbed my luggage. "Of course, of course. No problem at all."

I shot Kira a look that promised revenge later, but followed them up.

At our apartment door, Kira tipped the driver generously. "Thank you so much for your help."

"My pleasure! Good luck with the baby!" He waved and headed back down.

We let ourselves into the apartment, and I immediately felt that sense of home that had been missing for weeks. Our space. Our sanctuary.

Kira wheeled her suitcase toward her room. "I’m going to unpack and then crash. Jet lag is hitting hard."

"Same."

I was heading to my own room when Kira’s voice stopped me. "Liv? Did you leave this here before we left?"

I turned to see her pointing at a large gift box on our coffee table. Elegant black wrapping paper, silver ribbon, expensive-looking.

"No," I said slowly. "I didn’t leave anything out."

We both stared at it.

Then at each other.

"Someone broke in," Kira said, her voice dropping to a whisper.

"But who? How? Our door was locked..."

"What if it’s Damien?" I asked. "What if he somehow got in to leave you something?"

"What if it’s your stranger?" Kira countered. "He’s obviously done this before. Left you gifts."

"That was ages ago. I haven’t heard from him since the mansion." But even as I said it, my heart was racing. "He wouldn’t break into my apartment when we haven’t even spoken in a while. That’s insane."

"Leaving gifts for someone whose identity you’re hiding is also technically stalking, but that didn’t stop him before."

Fair point.

We approached the box like it might explode.

"I’ll open it," Kira announced. "You’re pregnant. If it’s something dangerous..."

"If it’s dangerous, I don’t want you near it either!"

"I’m the godmother. It’s my job to protect Rebel." She squared her shoulders. "Stand back."

I moved behind her, peering over her shoulder as she carefully untied the silver ribbon and lifted the lid.

Inside, nestled in tissue paper, was a single key.

An elegant brass key with an ornate handle.

"A key?" I breathed. "To what?"

"There’s a note." Kira pulled out a cream-colored card, expensive stationery with elegant handwriting.

She read aloud:

"Mi amor,

Consider this a gift from the dept of my heart. A place where you can build your dreams without worry, where you and those you love will always be safe and comfortable.

The address is listed below. Everything you need is already there - furniture, clothes, a fully stocked kitchen. You can move in today if you wish. Tomorrow. Whenever you’re ready.

This is yours. No strings. No expectations. Just a home, because everyone deserves a place where they truly belong.

Con todo mi corazón, Your Stranger

Below the signature was an address in one of the nicest neighborhoods in the city.

We stood there in absolute silence for a full thirty seconds.

Then we both screamed.

"WHAAAAAAAT?!"

"WE’RE LANDLADIES!"