Elara’s lips pressed together as she stared at the person standing by the door.

"Hi, Elara," Carris said, lifting a hand in a small wave.

Her face remained calm, but inside, confusion and surprise mixed together. They had been careful, extremely careful, choosing a place no one could easily trace, making sure their move stayed quiet. Yet he was here, standing right at her door like he had always known where to find her.

"Can I come in?" Carris asked again, a faint smile resting on his lips.

Elara’s brows lifted and her fingers tightened on the door for a second before she stepped aside.

"Come in." she nodded.

"Thanks," he said, walking past her.

Elara closed the door behind him, her gaze following him as he moved into the living room, looking around with interest.

"This place is nice," he said, turning back toward her.

Before Elara could respond, Ziva’s door flew open almost instantly and she rushed out. Her eyes flicked from Elara to Carris, then back again. She walked straight over and stopped in front of Elara, her voice low but clear enough to carry across the room. "Seriously... what is he doing here?"

Elara gave a small shrug, a soft sigh slipping out from her lips, then she walked past her toward Carris. "Is there a problem?" she asked calmly.

Carris smiled at her, his gaze lingering on her face. He looked like he was about to speak because he kept opening and closing his mouth, but in the end, he just let out another small smile.

Elara’s lips pressed together again. She glanced sideways at Ziva only to find that Ziva was already looking at her. Their eyes met briefly before she turned back. "If you’re here to talk about–"

"It’s fine," Carris cut in gently. "I came for something else." Then, as if he a thought had suddenly crossed his mind, he reached into his coat. "Oh... right."

He pulled out a small thermal paper bag and placed it on the center table. "I thought you might need this," he said. "It’s herbal honey tea. It will help keep your throat warm."

"Herbal honey tea?" Elara repeated, the corner of her lips lifting in confusion.

Why on earth would he bring her something like that... and even acting as if he had always brought her things?

"So this is what you came all the way here for?" she asked, stepping forward to the table. But before she could take another step, Ziva had quickly moved toward her and grabbed her wrist.

"Wait," she whispered urgently. "What are you doing? Think about this. How did he even find this place?"

Elara had wondered the same thing. But even so, she knew very well that Carris wasn’t a threat. He was a good person.

"It’s fine," she murmured back softly. "Don’t worry." 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

She stepped forward and stopped right in front of him, picking up the bag from the table. "Thank you," she said quietly, looking up at him. "Is that all you..."

"I didn’t come just for the tea," Carris replied, his voice trailing off. He hesitated for a moment, his lips parting a bit, then his expression suddenly shifted to a grim seriousness which caught Elara off guard.

"You look like you haven’t been sleeping. Are you eating properly? This area is quiet, but it gets a bit cold at times. You shouldn’t stay somewhere that feels too chilly."

Elara’s brows raised, a hint of amusement showing in her eyes as she looked at him. Even Ziva looked surprised.

Carris seemed to realize how strange he sounded so he straightened up and cleared his throat, but he kept quiet again.

"Do you need any help?" Elara asked politely when she couldn’t take it anymore, though she wasn’t sure what a man of his status could possibly want from her.

Carris’s gaze dropped to the table, his lips pressing together before he smiled again.

"Right... never mind," he muttered with a soft chuckle. Then he reached into his coat once more and pulled out a thin leather file. "Let’s sit," he said.

"What do you mean?" Ziva asked while stepping closer, her eyes narrowing at the sight of the file in his hand.

Carris walked over to the couch and sat down, placing the file in front of him.

"I came because I want to offer you a collaboration," he said, looking up at Elara. "I have a new song... and I want you to feature in it."

A small jolt ran through Elara at his words, catching her off guard. Ziva had already stepped forward, her eyes widening as she stared at the file on the table like it might disappear if she blinked.

Elara remained where she was, her thoughts running in circles.

A collaboration with him... Carris Riole. Of course this wasn’t something small.

She finally walked over and stopped in front of him, but still she didn’t even know what to say.

Carris looked up at her and smiled, then lowered his gaze back to the file. "Come take a look," he said simply. "Tell me what you think."

Elara stood rooted to the ground for a heartbeat longer, then she moved and sat down beside him. She opened the file and started flipping through the pages.

"This part..." Carris said, pointing to a section on the paper. "That’s where your lines will go."

Elara nodded in acknowledgement, her expression calm as she continued reading. Ziva couldn’t hold herself back anymore. She moved quickly to Elara’s side and leaned in.

"Elara," she whispered, lowering her voice as much as possible. "This is huge. It could change everything."

Before Elara could respond, Ziva had straightened and turned to Carris without hesitation. "Then... since there are no objections from either side, I think we should move forward and finalize the agreement," she said, her tone polite but eager.

Her words were met with silence.

Ziva blinked once, then leaned toward Elara again, her fingers tugging secretly at her sleeve.

"Come on," she whispered urgently. "Let’s not think too much. Opportunities don’t wait around forever... they knock once and if you’re busy overthinking, they leave and marry your neighbor."