After they finished packing, Max carried their overnight bags to his truck. Nina volunteered to drive since Max was still feeling a bit woozy from the night before.

They hit the road.

With Nina at the wheel, they zipped down the palm tree lined streets of Santa Monica Boulevard. In time, houses and buildings grew sparser as they left the city center. The Santa Monica Mountains loomed in the distance. Weezer's "Island in the Sun" crooned on the radio. It felt like the perfect beginning to a perfect weekend getaway. Nina even remembered to bring some of their favorite Asian snacks. Like pineapple cakes, Hi-Chew candies, and sachima.

The components for a nice, chill mini road trip were in play. Yet, even while Max munched away on a sweet, doughy sachima, his brain buzzed incessantly with questions as he stared out the passenger side window.

How did Lexi even get a hold of Nina's number?

What did Lexi say to Nina?

Was there going to be more drama?

Max simply couldn't relax. Not yet, anyway. Ever since Nina brought up Lexi's name earlier in the apartment, his entire body had been thrumming with anxiety. He kept trying to get answers out of Nina, but she was insistent on getting them out of the apartment on time for their Airbnb check-in.

"We'll have two hours to talk on the drive," she had told him over and over again.

When Nina finally pulled onto CA-60, Max couldn't hold back any longer. He demanded, "Why did Lexi call you?"

Even though her eyes were still on the road, Nina seemed to pick up on the tension that was radiating from Max.

She reassured him, "It's okay, Max. There's no need to stress out. Talking to Lexi actually helped me realize something really important about our relationship."

Max's blue-green eyes rounded out in shock.

What the fuck?

Had Lexi actually reached out—to help?

This didn't sound like her at all. Suspiciously, Max asked, "What did you guys talk about?"

Nina wrinkled her nose. "She actually called to cuss me out."

Well, now, this definitely sounded more like something Lexi would do. Max groaned apologetically, "Are you serious? Shit, I'm so sorry that you had to go through that crap."

"It's not necessarily a bad thing, though. Lexi actually provided me with some valuable new perspective on our situation."

What kind of perspective?

Max felt baffled. "Sorry, I'm not really following?"

She explained, "I didn't take Lexi's insults to heart because... I think... she was mostly upset at me... for hurting you."

"Aw, hell no! She shouldn't be talking to you like that at all. Period."

Max was ready to pull out his phone, call up Lexi, and rip her a new one.

"No, baby, listen," Nina protested, "Lexi helped me see that... maybe... I had been too stuck in my own head to realize that you were struggling as much as me this week."

"What?"

"In a way, you should thank Lexi for helping me see the light. My conversation with her was one of the reasons why I decided to come back this weekend."

His jaw dropped by a whole inch. "No fucking way."

"Yes fucking way," countered Nina.

Max fell quiet for a moment. Nina wasn't wrong. Last week had been some kind of hell for him. He grimaced. "I mean, I'm not gonna lie, long-distance is already pretty tough. It sucked not being able to, at least, hear your voice and see your face on FaceTime all week."

Nina replied in a quiet voice, "I know, Max. I know. I feel so bad about pushing you away, but I needed to work through some shit. Leftover emotional shit. It had more to do with my own hang-ups than any of those stupid photos with Lexi or your fame on the internet."

"What kind of hang-ups?" he inquired gently.

Nina's fingers tightened on the steering wheel.

"When I was dating Ethan," she began in halting tones, "I gave up a lot to be with him. Because he was born into a lot of privilege and wealth. And I was born with nothing. I changed almost everything about myself to earn his family and friends' approval. Yet, I ended up brokenhearted and miserable. I still remember how Ethan and his circle made me feel so small and insignificant. It was, like, I was never good enough for them. No matter how hard I tried to fit in and better myself."

Max's heart broke for her. "Oh, baby..."

"I guess... I was scared that... once you and I made our relationship known... publicly... the same thing might happen again where I would have to change myself to please your fans and to avoid criticism from total strangers on the internet."

Max's heart tightened in his chest. Suddenly, he understood why Nina had been so hesitant to announce their relationship. He promised her, "I would never ask you to do anything that you're not comfortable with, Nina. We can keep dating under the radar until we're old and gray if that's what you want."

"I know you would never pressure me, Max," Nina murmured, "and that's what I figured out this week. Our relationship is so wonderful. And... freeing. It's nothing like what I experienced in the past. You always make me feel like I'm good enough. That, instead of being a disappointment or an embarrassment, I actually make you happy. And proud. In fact, you're probably my number one hype man of all time."

Nina's words made him want to melt. In a gruff voice, Max half-joked, "That's probably because I know you're way out of my league. And that I'm one lucky son of a bitch to date you. I gotta bust my ass to fool you into thinking that I'm good enough for you."

"Stop it, Max. You and I both know there was no trickery involved," Nina chided. "I chose you, fair and square, because you're amazing."

"No, mami," he corrected, "you're the amazing one!"

"No, you're amazing!"

"No, you!"

Their childish banter wrung a low chuckle from Nina.

Max laughed, too.

With a thoughtful expression, she continued, "You know... Lexi also brought up how hard it can be for influencers, like you guys, who are constantly under the internet's microscope to find a sense of normalcy once the cameras turn off."

It was hard for Max to believe that Lexi could be so eloquent with words.

"Did she really say that?"

Nina coughed. "Not verbatim, but..."

Max narrowed his eyes. "Please, baby, tell me exactly what Lexi said to you. I wanna know."

She cringed slightly. "Really?"

"Really."

Nina sighed. "Fine, I'll tell you what she said, but you have to promise not to start any shit with her, okay? I just wanna put all this nonsense behind us."

"Okay," Max bit out begrudgingly. "I promise I'll leave her alone."

Nina released a harsh breath. "Okay, don't get mad, but... Lexi might have said something to the effect of, 'Our lives may look perfect on camera, but they're totally fucked up off-camera, so all you're doing is fucking up Max even more!'"

He clenched his jaw. "What the hell is her problem?"

Max wanted to scream at Lexi for being so rude to Nina. He regretted making that promise to Nina almost instantly.

Nina merely shrugged. She seemed untroubled by it all. "Honestly, she's kinda right. It made me realize that everything between us needs to be a two-way street, which definitely extends to our professional lives. You let me move to Seattle to pursue my new job. So, now, I need to figure out how to support you with your career, especially after we tell everyone that you're my man."

This one-eighty shift in Nina's decision to announce their relationship, publicly, stunned Max.

He stammered, "Wait, wait, wait! Hold up! Are you saying that you wanna go public with me?"

Nina smiled in amusement. "I kinda am, yeah."

Max grinned from ear to ear. "Are you sure?"

"I've never been so sure of anything in my life."

Her words sent his heart soaring towards the sky. Instinctively, Max reached over to caress her thigh. It was all he could do, for now, within the confines of his truck. In this small way, Max wanted to touch Nina. To claim her. To feel connected to her. He confessed shyly, "I, uh, did some thinking of my own, too, this week."

Nina side-eyed him as she drove. Her eyes gleamed with genuine curiosity. "Oh, yeah?"

Max nodded. "I want you to know that, even though it was hard for me to stay away from you this past week, you should never feel bad or feel sorry about taking time to process your shit. I'm here for you through rain or shine. Okay?"

Nina's eyes watered with happy tears. "Okay."

Keeping one hand on the steering wheel, she reached over to hold Max's hand. After a moment, she mumbled, "Thank you, Max. You have no idea how much that means to me."

Warmth spread from the top of his head to the tip of his toes. "Of course. You know I'd do anything to make you happy, mami."

Nina whispered sweetly, "I love you so much."

Max's voice hitched in his throat. "I-I love you more."

They drove in comfortable, happy silence with their hands entwined. Max could barely keep his eyes off of his beautiful brown-eyed girl. Now that everything had been mostly straightened out between them, Max felt so at peace with Nina at his side.

Ten minutes later, they merged onto the I-10.

Nina said, "Hey, Max?"

"What's up?"

"I was thinking..."

He glanced over. "Yeah?"

"So... my grandma's birthday is coming up soon. She's turning seventy-two this year. I was planning to go back to New York again and celebrate with her."

He swallowed anxiously. Max had a feeling he knew where she was headed with this topic, and it both worried and excited him. Max listened intently. "Uh-huh, go on."

"Her birthday is in March," Nina went on to say, "and I was wondering... did you, maybe, wanna go with me... to meet my grandma? I think it would help her understand why I love you so much if she actually got to see you in person. She's really good at reading a person's vibes."

"You want me to go to New York with you? To meet your grandma? On her birthday?" Max repeated slowly.

Nervousness settled over Nina's lovely features. "Yeah... that's the gist of it. I mean, I totally understand if you're not comfortable with the idea since we barely started dating—"

"I wanna go," Max stated without hesitation. "Your grandma is important to you, so I know it's important to make sure she likes me."

Nina's face brightened. "I'm gonna start buttering her up as soon as possible. Hopefully, by March, she'll have a totally different opinion about you!"

"Gee, thanks. That makes me feel super confident going into this..."

"I'm not gonna sugar coat anything, Max. My grandma isn't gonna make it easy for you," Nina warned. "Remember what Ethan used to call her? 虎姑婆?"

Max groaned, "Dude, if you're trying to make me feel better, then it's definitely not working..."

She giggled. "But I know she'll love you once she gets to know you. You're kinda irresistible, Max."

His eyes softened. "Good. I hope so. Because I wanna marry you someday, mami. And I'm gonna need your grandma's blessing to do it."

Nina's eyebrows shot to the roof of his truck as her mouth formed a perfect O.

"What did you just say to me, Max?"

"I said," Max repeated as he tightened his hold around her hand, "that I'm calling dibs on your ring finger."

As if to illustrate his point, he lifted her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss onto said finger.

Nina's eyes grew round and misty. "Dude..."

"Don't freak out, I'm not in any hurry or anything, like, there's literally no need for us to rush at all. We can take things as slowly or as quickly as you want, but you're the one for me, Nina Bai, in this lifetime and the next. Plain and simple."

Nina sniffled tearfully. Her lower lip trembled with emotion. Then, she wailed happily, "Goddamnit, Max! You can't say stuff like that when I'm driving! It's not safe! Now I'm feeling too flustered and happy and shit to concentrate on the road!"

"Did you wanna switch?"

She shook her head and smiled. "No, it's fine, we're practically there, but, damn, daddy, the idea of marrying you someday is really turning me on!"