Chapter 13: Addicted to the Ache

Zay’s POV

Vee didn’t say much when we left the coffee shop. She just nodded, gave me this unreadable look, and walked off into the night like she hadn’t just shattered my entire world by saying yes to being there. She’d agreed to sit with me—willingly. No yelling. No storming off. No sharp words or icy stares.

That was new.

It wasn’t much, but it was enough to ignite the small hope I’d been guarding like a secret. She gave me a crack of light in all the darkness I’d wrapped around us.

And now? I wanted more. Not in the cocky, arrogant way I used to take everything I wanted. This was different. She made me earn it. Every glance. Every second of conversation. Every ounce of trust. It drove me insane in the best way.

The next day, I found myself wandering past the student center at the exact time I knew she’d be walking out of her English Lit class. Not on purpose or anything.

Okay. Maybe totally on purpose.

She came out with a couple of girls, laughing about something I couldn’t hear. That sound—her real laugh—was rare. It made my chest tight. She hadn’t laughed like that in front of me since we were kids. Before I turned into a walking disaster and took her with me.

As she spotted me leaning against the pillar like I hadn’t been waiting for twelve minutes straight, she slowed.

“Zay,” she said, expression neutral.

“Vee,” I nodded. “Look at us—running into each other again. Must be fate.”

She rolled her eyes, but I caught the edge of a smile. “Or stalking.”

“Let’s not throw around hurtful accusations.”

Her friends looked confused, then amused, then like they were trying to suppress squeals. I had to fight the smirk that twitched at the corners of my mouth when she cleared her throat and waved them off.

Once they were gone, it was just us. Her arms crossed. My hands shoved deep in my hoodie pocket, trying not to shake like a damn teenager.

“You free this weekend?” I asked.

Her eyes narrowed slightly. “For what?”

“I was thinking…” I paused, realizing how lame it sounded. “A real date. Like normal people. Movie, food. I even promise to let you pick.”

She blinked. “You’re serious?”

“Scary, right?” I grinned. “But yeah. I want to spend time with you—without the history books between us.”

She didn’t answer right away. My heartbeat thudded so loud I was sure she could hear it. Then she surprised me.

“I’ll think about it.”

She walked off before I could say anything else. Didn’t say no. Didn’t say yes. Just left me standing there like a dumbass grinning at thin air.

That night, I couldn’t sleep. I kept replaying her voice, her face, her laugh. The Vee I saw now wasn’t just the girl I bullied, the girl I crushed on from the shadows. She was the woman I wanted in my future. Not because she made me feel something—but because she made me want to be better.

I knew this was slow. I knew she was cautious. Hell, I didn’t blame her.

But I also knew something else.

I wasn’t afraid of the ache anymore. I was addicted to it.

Because every step toward her—every second she let me in—felt like healing.

And damn, I wanted to be whole.