The Guide is Actually a Body-Switching Esper [BL]-Chapter 243: Perfect Place

Once they were both cleaned up and changed into clean and intact clothes - which didn’t take all that long, as Lane behaved unbelievably well, washing up without trying to snuggle up to Damien - they grabbed a few things, and got back in the car. It was Saturday night, and the streets were filled with cars, primarily party-goers and cabs. Although nowhere as bad as during rush hours, it still slowed them down a bit, especially as they got closer to the center.

But Lane didn’t mind. He was in too good of a mood to care about such minor inconveniences.

Damien, on the other hand... While he wasn’t bothered by the traffic either, what he DID care about was the direction in which they were driving. They were clearly approaching the city center.

And that’s where he was supposed to stay? Not just a night, but live from now on?

Rent in the central part of the capital was super expensive!

His face grew even paler when Lane took a turn, and drove through the gates leading to the underground parking garage of a very luxurious-looking apartment building. A place like that... While Damien had no idea about the prices, he wouldn’t be surprised if the monthly rent turned out to be as high as renting his current studio for a few years!

"Lane, I’m not sure if it’s a good idea..." he muttered, looking at the cars parked inside the garage. They didn’t look out of place... But that was because they were in Lane’s fancy car! Damien had never even sat in such a car before today!

But Lane was still completely at ease, obviously. "Relax. Let’s go see it first, okay? I’m sure you’re going to love it!"

"Uh..." Whether Damien would like it or not wasn’t the problem here. But he didn’t have time to raise his concerns, as Lane had already parked the car.

"This will be your parking spot from now on. This, and the one right next to it," Lane pointed out at the second spot, "In case you want to have two cars."

"...I don’t even have a car."

"Yet. We’ll fix that later." Lane waved his head dismissively, and grabbed Damien by the hand, dragging him toward the elevators. "But the Association Headquarters are very close to here, just a short walk, so we don’t need to worry about commuting."

’We,’ he said. But Damien was still too overwhelmed by the place, and Lane’s comment about the car, that he completely missed that. Especially since Lane continued to flood him with the perks of the place Damien could most certainly not afford.

"There’s a swimming pool and sauna available, gym, community garden in the middle, as well as a smaller indoor garden, a rooftop deck, a cinema room, and a party space you can rent..." Lane continued to list all the amenities available, as they waited for the elevator. "Although you probably won’t be using that. Or the gym, since it’s not good enough for high-ranking Awakened. But the garden and the rooftop are nice. Would you like to take a look at them now, or..."

"...Let’s just go to that apartment," Damien sighed, rubbing his furrowed brows. He hasn’t yet fully decided whether he would stay there for the night - although he had an inkling that Lane had already paid for it, and would coax him into agreeing - and he really should be heading to bed soon. Although he could stay awake for a few days and still function well, it would be easy for him to drift off when sitting alone in his office doing paperwork...

"Well, okay! I can give you a tour tomorrow!"

They got into the elevator, and Lane pressed the 121st floor. Which caused Damien’s face to turn pale again. He didn’t have acrophobia or anything like that, but... Weren’t the apartments on the higher floors more expensive? Damien didn’t really know, but he thought that might be the case!

The elevator pinged, and the door opened onto a spacious, clean, bright hallway, so different from what Damien was used to. And there seemed to be... hardly any door? Damien could see only two, one of which was marked as the staircase.

Before it could all sink in, Lane had already dragged him to the one and only apartment door, with number 209 on it. "Here you have a palm print scanner," he explained, pressing his palm against the black screen next to the door, opening it. "Once we add your palm print later, you will be able to open the door the same way. And if it doesn’t read well for some reason, you can always use the PIN code, 0213..."

"Your birthday?"

"Yes!" Lane grinned, pulling Damien inside. " Now look! Here you have..."

He dragged the man around, showing him the spacious kitchen, the dining room, the living room, the laundry room, three bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms, and the extra toilet next to the living room for the guests, until taking him out to the large balcony overlooking the city.

"What do you think?" he then asked, leaning against the railing, the cold night’s wind playing with his soft pink hair, still damp from the shower, his grey eyes shining brighter than the city lights below them. "Isn’t it great?"

It was unnecessarily big, Damien’s whole family, with his nine siblings, could fit in here, but Damien didn’t point that out, since he knew that he and Lane had completely different standards when it came to... well, practically everything. So instead, he just said, "It is, but I don’t think I can afford it..."

"Ah, don’t worry about that. The rent is free. You have the best landlord, you see," Lane flashed a wide grin.

There was no need for Damien to ask who the landlord was. Still, even if they were dating... "Lane, it is a bit... I don’t think I can accept it..."

"Of course you can." Lane’s voice was firm. He pushed himself from the railing and approached Damien in the blink of an eye, grabbing him gently by the chin. "I’ve already bought it, and I don’t have any use for it anyway. So, it would be a waste for me if you don’t move in!"

...He could always sell it or rent it to someone else, for actual money and not just a pretty face (not that he was giving it to Damien just because he was handsome. Those were only boyfriend perks). Lane knew it, Damien knew it, and Lane knew that Damien knew. Even if Damien refused, there wouldn’t be any loss for Lane.

Well, maybe except for an emotional one. Plus the loss of effort, and...

"Wait a minute," Lane gasped lightly, taking a step back. "I almost forgot! You haven’t seen the best feature of this place yet! Just stay here for a moment... Don’t move..." He gestured at Damien, before rushing back inside from the balcony, and then out of the apartment.

Only to appear a moment later, jumping from the floor above with a somersault. He landed nimbly on the railing, so nonchalant, as if they weren’t over a hundred stories above the ground.

"Guess who’s your upper-floor neighbor!" he laughed.