LOGINBailey POVWe ran through the rain to the entrance and up the stairs to my apartment. I fumbled with my keys, hands shaking from the cold, and pushed the door open.The warmth inside hit us both instantly.I dropped my bag by the door and kicked off my wet shoes. Mark did the same, stepping inside carefully, looking around without saying anything."Kitchen's that way," I said, pointing. "Give me a minute."I walked to the kitchen and started the coffee maker, moving on autopilot. Mugs. Filter. Water. Simple tasks to keep my hands busy and my brain quiet.But my body was shivering. My clothes were stuck to my skin, cold and heavy. My jacket clung to my arms. My top pressed flat against my chest.I glanced down.My breath caught.The wet fabric had gone almost see-through, hugging tight against my chest. And my nipples, hard from the cold, pressed clearly through the thin material.Visible.Obviously visible.I looked up.Mark was leaning against the kitchen doorway.His eyes were not o
Bailey POVThe sky had been threatening all afternoon.Dark clouds rolled in during the last hour of practice, heavy and low, turning the air thick and humid. I kept one eye on the weather and the other on my athletes, pushing them through their final sets before the rain hit."That's it!" I shouted, blowing my whistle. "Cool down and head out. Now."The group scattered fast. Nobody wanted to get caught in what was coming.I gathered my things quickly, shoving my clipboard and stopwatch into my bag as the first fat drops of rain hit the track. By the time I reached the parking lot, it was pouring.Not drizzling.Pouring.The kind of rain that soaked you through in seconds.I ran to my SUV, yanked the door open, threw my bag across the passenger seat, and jammed the key into the ignition.Click.Nothing.I turned it again.Click. Click.Dead."No," I muttered. "No, no, no. Not today."I tried again. Same thing. The engine didn't even try to turn over. Just that flat, empty clicking so
Bailey POVThe drive to the academy the next morning felt longer than usual.My hands sat at ten and two on the steering wheel, grip tighter than it needed to be. Last night kept replaying in my head. Lola's voice. The wine. The tears. Phillip's words. And underneath all of it, like a current I couldn't switch off, the memory of Mark's thumb brushing the corner of my mouth.I swallowed hard and turned up the radio.It didn't help.Today was general practice. The full squad. Thirty athletes on the track. Drills, sprints, cool downs. A regular session like any other.Mark would be there.Obviously.He trained with the squad just like everyone else. Our private sessions didn't change that. At the academy, he was just another athlete. Another runner. Another face in the group.That's all.I'd ignore him. Focus on the other students. Keep my distance. Keep things professional.Simple.I pulled into the academy parking lot and grabbed my bag from the passenger seat.Simple, I told myself a
Bailey POVHer face had gone red with anger, jaw tight, eyes blazing."Lola, sit down.""I'm going to kill him, Bailey.""Sit down."She stood there for a few more seconds, fists clenched at her sides, breathing hard through her nose.Then she sat.Slowly."That man," she said, her voice low and shaking, "is the worst thing that ever happened to you. And I promise you, every single word he said was a lie. Every one."My eyes burned."I know," I whispered."Do you? Because the fact that you kept this in for three weeks tells me those words are still sitting in your head."I didn't answer.She leaned forward."You are beautiful, Bailey. Strong, yes. Built different, yes. But that's what makes you incredible. Any man who can't see that is blind and stupid. And Phillip was both."A tear slipped down my cheek before I could catch it.I wiped it fast."Okay," I said, clearing my throat. "That's not the only thing I need to tell you."Lola's eyebrows rose."There's more?""Remember the gig?
Bailey POVI didn't go straight home after the burger place.I drove halfway home and stopped.I sat in my car for ten minutes, parked at the side of the road, engine running, fingers tapping the steering wheel while my brain went in circles.The feeling of Mark's thumb on my lip wouldn't go away.His eyes watching me while he sucked the ketchup off his finger wouldn't go away.The way he said "good" when I told him Phillip was gone wouldn't go away.Nothing was going away.And I had nobody to talk to about any of it.I couldn't bring myself to tell Steven. My brother would ask too many questions. My other colleagues at the academy barely knew me well enough for small talk, let alone something like this.That left one person.I picked up my phone and called Lola.She answered on the second ring."If you're calling to cancel on something, I swear to God, Bailey.""Can I come over?"Silence.She knew that tone. The one I only used when things were bad."Door's open," she said.Twenty mi
Bailey POVMonday's session ran late.I didn't plan it that way. But Mark's start out of the blocks was sloppy, and I refused to let him leave until he cleaned it up.So we stayed.Long after the sun dipped below the trees and the park lights flickered on, casting everything in a soft golden glow."Again," I called out.He lined up. Ran forward. Drove hard through the first thirty meters.Better.Much better."Time?" he asked, jogging back."Four point two. That's where you need to be every time."He nodded, hands on his hips, breathing steady despite the hour of work behind him."We're done," I said, clicking off the stopwatch. "Good session."He wiped his face with the bottom of his shirt. I kept my eyes on my clipboard.Lesson learned from Saturday."You hungry?" he asked.I looked up."What?""Food, Coach. The thing humans need to survive."I gave him a flat look."I know what food is.""Then you know you need some," he said, grabbing his bag. "Burger spot two blocks from here. My
Fabian POV.I stood up and went to the window. The courtyard below was empty and washed in faint moonlight. For a second, I wondered where he was sleeping tonight. Whether he was still awake, replaying the same moments. Whether he was thinking of me, like I was of him.Probably not, I told myself
Steven POV.Guilt surged through me at his question. "Of course not, why would I avoid you?" I lied, trying to sound carefree.His gaze said he wasn't buying my lie. In the real sense, he'd done nothing wrong to me. To be honest, all he did was help me when I was in distress, first with my car an
Steven POV.Hours later.The storm didn’t end, it just changed shape.By evening, the rain had slowed, but the wind still howled, rattling the window like it was begging to get in.I’d spent the entire day pretending Fabian wasn't now living with me.While I stayed indoors, He, on the other hand, h
Steven POV.My voice trembled as the words spilled out, each one a painful reminder of the ridicule and belittling I'd endured for years. The sting of being called a Sissy still lingered, but it was nothing compared to the bets they'd placed on me, predicting I'd end up a cocksucker. Determined t







