MasukJordy forced himself to stay calm under his mother’s gaze.
The living room suddenly felt too warm, too quiet, too small.
“You know I love you, right?” she repeated softly.
Jordy nodded slowly. “I know.”
She smiled faintly, though the worry in her eyes did not disappear.
“I just want you to be honest with me.”
His stomach tightened.
Because he knew exactly what she was asking without her needing to say it directly.
For a second, Jordy con
Jordy forced himself to stay calm under his mother’s gaze.The living room suddenly felt too warm, too quiet, too small.“You know I love you, right?” she repeated softly.Jordy nodded slowly. “I know.”She smiled faintly, though the worry in her eyes did not disappear.“I just want you to be honest with me.”His stomach tightened.Because he knew exactly what she was asking without her needing to say it directly.For a second, Jordy considered telling the truth.Not everything.Just enough to stop hiding.But then reality crashed into him again.Matt upstairs.Their parents newly married.The disaster that would follow.No.He could not.Not now.His mother finally asked the question quietly.“Are you seeing someone?”Jordy’s heart slammed painfully against his chest.He looked down briefly before shaking his head.“No.”Th
The moment the door opened, time seemed to stop.Matt jerked away from Jordy so quickly that he nearly lost balance, while Jordy stumbled backward off the bed, his heart slamming violently against his chest.His mother stood frozen at the doorway.For one horrible second, nobody moved.Nobody breathed.Jordy could still feel the warmth of Matt’s hand under his shirt even though he had already pulled away.His mother’s eyes moved between them slowly.Matt sitting too close.Jordy flushed.The tension in the room.Everything looked suspicious.Too suspicious.Jordy’s stomach dropped.“M-Mom…”Her expression shifted almost immediately, not fully shocked, but confused enough to make panic crawl up Jordy’s spine.“I knocked,” she said slowly.Neither of them answered.Because honestly?Neither of them heard anything before the door opened.Matt stood up fir
The room went completely silent after Jordy asked the question.Matt stared at him like he had heard wrong.“What?”Jordy immediately regretted saying it out loud.He looked away first, rubbing his arm awkwardly. “I am just asking.”Matt’s expression hardened slightly. “Why would you even ask that?”Jordy forced out a small laugh, trying to make it sound lighter than it actually was. “Can I not ask questions anymore?”Matt did not laugh.The atmosphere in the room shifted almost instantly.A few minutes ago everything had felt normal, soft, familiar.Now there was tension sitting heavily between them.Matt stepped back slightly, studying Jordy carefully. “Did something happen?”“No.”“Then where is this coming from?”Jordy hesitated.He could not exactly tell Matt that Lucas’s confession had triggered an existential crisis inside him.That hearing someone talk so openly an
Jordy’s teasing smile slowly disappeared after Lucas spoke.The restaurant suddenly felt quieter than before, the soft sounds of plates and low conversations fading into the background as Jordy stared at him.Lucas still was not looking directly at him.“My staying away was just my way of coping,” he repeated quietly. “After you rejected me.”Jordy swallowed slightly.For some reason, hearing Lucas say it so calmly made guilt creep into his chest again.Not because he liked Lucas back in that way.But because he knew Lucas had been sincere from the beginning.Lucas was not dramatic like Tobe or loud like Sarah. He barely spoke unless necessary, and when he did, every word sounded intentional. So hearing him openly admit his feelings again carried more weight than Jordy expected.Lucas picked up his cup and took a small sip before continuing.“My feelings for you were genuine.”Jordy looked down at his food
After what happened during break, Jordy could barely look at Lucas properly for the rest of the day.Every time he remembered the words that slipped out of his mouth, embarrassment washed over him all over again. He kept replaying the moment in his head while sorting packages, stacking boxes, even during assembly. Why would he say something like that so casually? And worse, why did it sound almost flirtatious when he said it?Jordy wanted the ground to open and swallow him whole.Meanwhile, Lucas acted like absolutely nothing had happened.Which somehow made it even worse.He continued working normally, moving packages around calmly, occasionally speaking to Sarah or Tobe when necessary, his face carrying that same unreadable expression as always.Not once did he mention the conversation again.Not once did he tease Jordy about it.That should have made Jordy feel relieved, but instead it made him hyperaware around him the enti
After that day at the shopping center, Jordy became more careful.Too careful.Matt’s question kept replaying in his mind over and over again.What is going on with you?The worst part was how close Matt had sounded to figuring it out. Jordy had seen the confusion in his eyes, the suspicion slowly forming behind it. If he kept acting strangely, Matt would keep pushing, and Jordy knew himself well enough to know that eventually he would say something he should not.So he decided to stop.Or at least pretend to.The following days, he forced himself to act more normal around Matt. He laughed at his jokes again, stayed around him longer downstairs, and stopped making distant comments that could be interpreted the wrong way.It worked.At least partially.Matt still looked at him strangely sometimes, like he sensed something was off, but he stopped asking questions directly. Whenever the topic drifted too close to fee
The ride felt… different.Not quiet in an awkward way, and not loud either.Just calm.The kind of calm that settled between two people who didn’t need to force conversation to fill the space. The road stretched ahead of them, the early daylight casting a soft glow through the windshield as the car
Jordy didn’t expect the feeling to settle in the way it did.
Jordy woke up slowly, like his body didn’t want to leave the moment behind.For a few seconds, he didn’t move. His eyes stayed closed as he tried to piece together where he was, what had happened, why everything felt… different.Then it came back.Everythin
“Finally,” Matt’s voice came through the phone, filled with exaggerated relief. “I thought I was never going to hear your voice again.”Jordy laughed softly, already smiling as he lay on his bed, one leg bent and the other stretched out. “It’s been







