Novels by Taleweaver

Aiden's POV The morning air was crisp, sunlight stretching across the campus lawn in perfect symmetry. A normal day, but nothing about me felt normal. I had barely slept. Even when sleep came, it wasn’t rest. It was memory, Julian’s voice, his eyes on me, the way he had said it: ‘Do you wish it were you on that bed instead?’ It haunted every corner of my mind. I woke before dawn, showered, dressed, stared at my reflection a little too long. But when I opened my planner and saw “10:00 AM Julian Harrison (office)” written in neat blue ink, I froze. It wasn’t avoidance, it wasn’t weakness. It was self-preservation. And maybe it was fear. So I made the call. I told his father I wouldn’t be at the university today, but would make it up next week. I gave no excuse. That alone was unlike me, and he probably noticed, but I didn’t care. Today was not for teaching, today was for pretending. *** The store smelled of polished wood and expensive things. Glass cases sparkled with

Julian’s POVThe day started empty. Too quiet, too normal. The kind of morning that should’ve meant nothing but somehow felt wrong from the moment I opened my eyes.I got dressed, showed up to class like always, and waited. The clock ticked. Students murmured, shuffled, stared at the door like I did. But it never opened.Aiden didn’t come.At first, I thought maybe he was late. He never was, but people had off days. Even him. I sat there for an hour, pretending to read, pretending I wasn’t counting the seconds. By the third hour, I gave up pretending altogether.His office was locked when I went there. I waited outside anyway, sitting on the bench across the hall like an idiot, scrolling through my phone just to look occupied.Two hours later, my phone buzzed. My father.“Julian,” his voice came through, low and casual. “Sorry, I forgot to tell you earlier. Professor Cole called this morning. Said he won’t be able to make it today.”I froze. “Did he say why?”“He said something about

JULIAN’S POVThe bass was the first thing I felt. Deep, heavy, vibrating through my ribs like a heartbeat that wasn’t mine. Lights flashed over the crowd, painting everything in blue and red. I’d lost count of how many drinks I’d had, and I didn’t care. That was the point. To stop thinking. To stop feeling.I just wanted Aiden out of my head.But no matter how loud the music got, I could still hear him. His voice, that calm and measured tone. The way he said my name like it was something worth saying. The way he looked at me like he wanted to and hated himself for it.I wanted to burn that image away.That’s when I saw him, the guy with sharp eyes and a wicked grin, dancing alone like he owned the floor. He looked at me once, slow and deliberate, and it was all the invitation I needed.I pushed through the crowd, every movement a dare, every beat a reason not to think. Our eyes met again, and he smiled like he already knew what I wanted. Maybe he did.When I reached him, he leaned in

JULIAN'S POV I couldn’t get the image out of my head. Aiden standing there at the doorway, eyes wide, his face frozen for that brief, fragile moment before he turned around. I’d seen the way his jaw clenched, the faint tremor that ran through his hand, and most of all, the unmistakable strain beneath his trousers before he spun away. He could pretend all he wanted, but I saw it. I saw everything. That night, I barely slept. My mind kept replaying it over and over, like some forbidden movie that refused to end. The way his voice always stayed calm and steady, the way his glasses slid slightly down his nose when he read… I’d never noticed how beautiful he looked when he was focused, how soft his lips appeared when he said my name in that controlled, patient tone. Now I couldn’t stop noticing. This morning, I found myself staring at my closet longer than usual. For the first time, I actually cared about what I wore to his class. I picked a white shirt, fitted enough to cling to

Aiden always thought silence could fix things. If you stayed quiet long enough, problems lost their power. But now, sitting in his office waiting for Julian, silence only made things worse.Every time Aiden closed his eyes, he saw flashes of what had happened the day before. Julian in that stall. The sound he made. The sight he was never meant to see.Aiden ran a hand through his hair and took a deep breath. It was a mistake, he told himself. Just an accident. But that didn’t stop his chest from tightening.When the door opened, he looked up, and there was Julian, walking in like nothing had happened. No guilt, no shame. Just that same careless air that followed him everywhere.“Morning,” Julian said, dropping his bag on the floor.Aiden adjusted his tie, keeping his face unreadable. “You’re early today.”Julian smirked. “You told me to take this seriously.”“I didn’t think you actually would.”Julian gave a lazy shrug and sat down opposite him. “I’m full of surprises.”Aiden ignored

Julian told himself he was only killing time. Just a quick distraction, something to bleed out the restlessness that had coiled in his veins since morning. The boy pressed against the tiled wall of the university bathroom wasn’t even his type. Too short, too eager, but his mouth was wet, his hands quick, and for a while, that was all Julian needed. He was flushed, teeth sinking into his lower lip, when the sharp buzz of his alarm cut through the humid air.He froze.“Shit.”The boy pulled back, confused. Julian didn’t bother to explain. He zipped himself up, ignoring the ache between his legs that hadn’t been resolved, and grabbed his bag. The alarm was merciless: his reminder for Aiden’s class.Julian almost laughed at the irony. He had been seconds away from finishing, but now he had to walk across campus half-hard, with his body thrumming like he’d been wound too tight. He muttered another curse, ran a hand through his already disheveled hair, and bolted.By the time he reached Aid