Mag-log inXavier’s POV
Her lips were soft, too soft for someone like me. I kissed her like I was drowning, like I needed her to breathe. Every part of me shook, but I didn’t stop. I couldn’t.
Then, slowly, she lifted my hand. My breath hitched, her eyes didn’t leave mine, and she placed my hand gently on her chest.
I froze, and my heart stopped beating for a second.
Her body was warm beneath my palm. Her chest rose and fell like she was just as breathless as I was. I looked down, then back at her. “Are you sure?” I whispered.
She nodded. “Yes.” She answered.
That
Tara’s POVMy mind was spinning, trying to make sense of what Jane had just said. Room 247. That was this room. The room I was in right now with Jake.But that couldn’t be right. Jane must have made a mistake. She must have gotten the wrong room number.“Jane,” I said, my voice shaking slightly. “What room number did you say?”“247,” Jane repeated clearly. “I saw Xavier go into room 247. Tara, I’m not making this up. I followed him here because I needed to talk to him, and I saw him go into that exact room.”I looked around the hotel room, my eyes landing on the number on the back of the door. 247.My heart started pounding harder. This had to be a coincidence. It had to be.“Okay, so Xavier is in this hotel,” I said, trying to keep my voice steady. “That doesn’t mean anything. Maybe he’s in a different room on a different floor. Maybe you saw the number wrong.”“I didn’t see it wrong,” Jane insisted. “Tara, I can even describe what he’s wearing. A black jacket, dark jeans, and…..”Th
Xavier’s POVI felt my jaw clench with irritation as Tara’s phone rang again. Jane had been calling all evening, over and over, completely disregarding the fact that Tara clearly didn’t want to talk. Who did that? Who kept calling someone repeatedly when they obviously weren’t answering?The selfishness of it made my blood boil. Couldn’t Jane understand that Tara had a life outside of their friendship? That maybe, just maybe, Tara was busy with something important?Like being here with me.But then Tara answered, and I tried to push down my annoyance. At least now Jane would say whatever she needed to say and leave us alone.“Jane, this better be important. Do you know what time it is?” Tara said, her voice sharp with irritation that mirrored my own feelings.I couldn’t hear what Jane was saying on the other end, just the muffled sound of her voice through the phone. Tara was sitting up now, the sheet wrapped around her, and I could see her expression changing as she listened.“What a
Tara’s POVJake was still trying to explain why he was wearing the mask, his words coming out in a rush like he was afraid I’d walk away before he finished. But I couldn’t focus on what he was saying. My mind was too full of everything that had happened today: Sarah in the hospital, Tony’s kiss, the guilt sitting heavy in my chest.“Jake,” I said, reaching out and gently tapping his arm to stop him mid-sentence. “It’s okay. You don’t have to explain right now.”He looked surprised, his eyes visible through the mask showing confusion. “Are you sure? I thought you’d want to know why I….”“I’m sure,” I interrupted softly. “Can we just… have dinner? I’ve had a really long day and I just want to be with you. We can talk about the mask later.”Jake studied my face for a moment, and I could tell he was trying to figure out if I was really okay or just pretending. Finally, he nodded. “Okay. Let’s get dinner then.”We made our way to the hotel restaurant, and Jake had apparently already made a
Tara’s POVI sat in the back of the cab, my mind spinning in circles as I stared out the window without really seeing anything. My fingers kept touching my lips, still feeling the ghost of Tony’s kiss there.What had I just done? Why had I kissed him back?The guilt crashed over me in waves, mixing with confusion and shame. I was on my way to meet Jake, Jake, and now I’d just kissed someone else hours before our meeting.I should have insisted that Jasper come with me to Tony’s place. If Jasper had been there, none of this would have happened. Tony wouldn’t have kissed me, and I wouldn’t have this awful guilt sitting heavy in my chest.But I’d respected Jasper’s boundaries when he said he didn’t want to come. I’d gone alone. And now everything was a mess.I was so lost in my spiraling thoughts that I didn’t even realize we were pulling up to my house until the driver’s voice snapped me out of it.“Miss? We’re here,” he said, glancing at me in the rearview mirror with concern. “Are you
Tara’s POVI walked out of the hospital with Jasper beside me, my legs feeling shaky and my emotions completely raw. Everything that had just happened with Sarah and her mother had left me feeling drained and overwhelmed.“That was intense,” I said quietly as we stepped out into the late afternoon sunlight.“You did a good job in there,” Jasper said, his voice warm with approval. “Standing up to Sarah’s mother like that. Not many people would have had the courage to do what you did.”“I just couldn’t watch her treat Sarah that way,” I said, my voice still thick with emotion. “She needed someone to tell her the truth.”“And you did,” Jasper confirmed. “I think your words really got through to her. Did you see how guilty she looked?”“I hope so,” I said. “Sarah deserves better.”We walked in silence for a moment before I glanced at my phone and realized how much time had passed. It was already early evening.“Oh no,” I said, stopping in my tracks. “I completely lost track of time. I sti
Jasper’s POV“Help!” Tara screamed at the top of her lungs, her voice cracking with panic. “Somebody help us! Please!”Maria came running out of the house first, her face going pale when she saw Sarah collapsed on the ground. Within seconds, she was on her phone calling for an ambulance while other staff members rushed out to see what was happening.“She just fainted,” I explained quickly, keeping my hand on Sarah’s wrist to feel for a pulse. “We were about to go for a walk and she just collapsed.”“The ambulance is on its way,” Maria said, kneeling down beside Sarah and gently touching her forehead. “Mija, can you hear me?”Sarah didn’t respond. Her face was so pale it was almost gray, and her breathing was shallow.The ambulance arrived within minutes, the paramedics taking over and carefully loading Sarah onto a stretcher. Tara and I climbed into the back of the ambulance with her, both of us refusing to leave her side. Maria said she would contact Sarah’s parents immediately and m







