Novels by ituafavour82

Chapter Twenty-Two: Cole povThe day after Maya and I had lunch at the diner, I woke up feeling lighter than I had in months.Not happy. Not fixed. But lighter. Like someone had taken a weight off my chest that I didn't even know I was carrying. The guest house was quiet. The sun was coming through the windows. The birds were singing outside. I lay in bed for a while, staring at the ceiling, thinking about everything that had happened.Maya wasn't ready to forgive me. But she was here. She was trying. That was enough for now.My phone buzzed. Jay.Good morning.Good morning, I replied.Did you sleep?Yeah. First time in weeks.Me too.Must have been the good news.Must have been.I smiled. I couldn't help it. Jay had that effect on me. Even through a text message.I'll see you later, I typed.The rink?Yeah. Same time.Can't wait.I put my phone down. Got out of bed. Made coffee. Drank it slowly. The coffee was hot. Too hot. But I didn't care. I just stood by the window, watching the

Chapter Twenty-One : Maya pov I woke up at 6am to the sound of rain hitting my window.The sky was gray. The streets were wet. My apartment was cold. I pulled the blanket tighter around my shoulders and stared at the ceiling. The same ceiling I'd been staring at for months. The same cracks in the paint. The same water stain in the corner. The same feeling of something heavy sitting on my chest.But today felt different.Not good. Not back to normal. But different. Lighter. Like someone had opened a window in a room that had been closed up for too long.I hadn't seen Cole since he came to my apartment. That was three days ago. Three days of thinking. Three days of processing. Three days of trying to figure out who I was now.My phone buzzed. Sarah.You awake?Yeah, I replied.You okay?I don't know.Want company?Not yet. But soon.Okay. I'm here.I put my phone down. Got out of bed. Made coffee. Burnt my tongue. Didn't care.I stood by the window. Watched the rain. Watched the cars d

Chapter Twenty : Cole pov The week after dinner felt different.Not perfect. Not back to normal. But different. Lighter. Like someone had opened a window in a room that had been closed up for too long.I still thought about Maya every day. Still felt the guilt sitting in my chest. Still wished I could go back and do things differently.But I stopped waking up at 3am with my heart racing. I stopped staring at my phone, willing her to text me. I stopped pretending I was okay when I wasn't.Because I wasn't okay. But I was getting there.Liam noticed at practice. We were sitting on the bench, lacing up our skates. The rink was cold. The ice was fresh. The smell of frozen water and rubber filled the air."You're smiling more," he said."I'm not smiling.""You are. It's weird. You never smile before practice.""I'm smiling because we're going to win today.""We're always going to win. You never smile about it."I didn't have an answer for that.Liam leaned over. His skates clacked against

Chapter Nineteen :Jay pov I woke up to sunlight on my face.Cole was still asleep next to me. His arm was around my waist. His breath was warm on my neck. His chest moved up and down. Slow. Steady. Peaceful.I didn't move. Didn't want to wake him.I just lay there. Feeling his heartbeat against my back.Last night felt like a dream.Dinner with his father. Maya showing up. The conversation that didn't fix everything but didn't break anything either.His father shaking my hand. Take care of my son.Maya hugging Cole. Take care of him.I wasn't used to people trusting me.Cole stirred. His arm tightened around my waist."Morning," he said. His voice was rough. Sleepy."Morning.""What time is it?""I don't know. Late."He pulled me closer. Buried his face in my hair."I could stay here forever," he said."Then stay.""I have practice at 10.""Then leave at 9:30."He laughed. Soft. Warm. "You're pushy.""You like it.""I love it."We lay there for another hour. Talking about nothing. Ta

Chapter Eighteen: Cole povSaturday came faster than I expected.I woke up at 5am. Couldn't fall back asleep. Just lay there staring at the ceiling, running through every possible version of how dinner could go.Best case: Everyone talks. Everyone listens. Everyone leaves feeling a little less broken.Worst case: My father says something cold. Maya walks out. Jay shuts down. I lose everyone in one night.My phone buzzed. Jay.You awake?Yeah, I replied. Can't sleep.Me neither.Scared?Terrified.Me too.But we'll do it together.Together.I put my phone down. Got out of bed.The guest house was quiet.I made coffee. Didn't drink it. Just watched it steam.My father had chosen the restaurant. Some place downtown. Expensive. Private. The kind of place where conversations didn't carry.He was trying. I had to give him that.My phone buzzed again. Maya.What time?7pm.Where?The place on Maple. I'll send you the address.Fine.Thank you for coming.Don't thank me yet.I put my phone dow

Chapter Seventeen :Maya povI hadn't seen Cole in three weeks.Not since the night he came to my apartment. Not since he sat on my couch and told me he wasn't going to stop loving Jay. Not since he left with tears on his face and hope in his eyes.Three weeks.I counted every day.At first, I was angry. Then I was sad. Then I was nothing.Now I was just... waiting.Waiting for what, I didn't know.Sarah came over on Tuesday. She brought pizza. Wine. A stack of movies I'd never heard of."You're not going to sit in this apartment forever," she said."I know.""Then come out with me.""Where?""Anywhere. The store. The park. I don't care. Just out."I looked at the window. The sun was setting. The sky was orange and pink."Okay," I said. "Let me get dressed."We walked to the park.The same park where I used to play as a kid. The same park where Cole taught me to ride a bike. The same park where Jay and I had our first kiss.I hadn't been here in months.Sarah sat on a bench. I sat next