Library
Search
Home / Romance / THE LINE BETWEEN US / CHAPTER FORTY

Share

CHAPTER FORTY

Author: Lisa
last update Last Updated: 2025-10-04 16:53:30

For a long moment, I didn’t move.

Taylor stood there across the street, leaning against the same lamppost he always did, like nothing had changed, like he hadn’t vanished and left me to worry. His face was unreadable, the morning light casting soft shadows beneath his eyes. The cold air slipped between us, silent and sharp.

I tightened my grip on the strap of my bag. My pulse quickened, not with excitement, but with a dull ache that had been building since the last time I saw him. I wanted to ask him where he’d been. I wanted to demand why he always disappearedwithout a word. But when our eyes met, all that spilled into me was exhaustion.

So I walked past him.

I didn’t say a word. Didn’t slow down. My shoes hit the gravel in steady rhythm, the sound louder than it should’ve been in the quiet morning. I could feel his gaze on me, heavy, following every step.

For a moment, I thought maybe he’d let me go, that this time, silence would be enough between us. But then I heard his footsteps,
Continue to read this book for free
Scan code to download App
Locked Chapter
Previous Chapter Next Chapter

Latest chapter

  • THE LINE BETWEEN US    CHAPTER EIGHTY FIVE

    I called her again.And again.And again.Each time, the answer was the same: a hollow, mechanical voice telling me the number I was trying to reach was unavailable. Eventually, the recording started to sound like mockery, a taunt that mirrored the twisting panic inside me.By the time the lunch bell rang, my thumb ached from pressing redial. Not that it stopped me.I tried one more time as I walked into the cafeteria.Same result.I shoved my phone into my pocket, jaw clenched so tight it hurt, and pretended I didn’t notice Marianne waving me over. Her smile was too bright, too eager, like she had been rehearsing it. Like she believed we still had a version of normal between us. I didn’t have the energy to correct her.I walked over anyway.And sat down anyway.Because pretending was easier than explaining why I felt like I was going to throw up.Marianne's friends were already clustered at the table, chattering about something I didn’t bother to decode. Their voices sounded like sta

  • THE LINE BETWEEN US    CHAPTER EIGHTY FOUR

    Marianne left without another word, and I swear it was like she’d read my mind for once. Maybe she finally understood the look on my face, the way my eyes kept dragging past her shoulder down the hallway, searching for someone else. Or maybe she just gave up. Either way, the moment she turned on her heel, something in me snapped free.I didn’t hesitate.Didn’t think.Didn’t care.I pushed off the locker and walked straight toward Taylor.He saw me coming. Of course he did. He straightened only slightly, crossing his arms as if he couldn’t be bothered to move, like he had all the time in the world to watch me unravel in front of him. His expression stayed carved out of stone, bored, cold, unimpressed.I didn’t bother with a greeting.“Where’s Autumn?”The words came out harsher than I intended, sharp enough to slice through the noise of the hallway. A couple of students slowed down, their curiosity piqued, but I didn’t look away from Taylor.He blinked once, slow, lazy. Then his mouth

  • THE LINE BETWEEN US    CHAPTER EIGHTY THREE

    The night dragged like it had something personal against me.I don’t even remember falling asleep. One moment I was staring at the ceiling, tracing the cracks like they could spell out what I was supposed to do next, and the next thing I knew, sunlight was leaking through the blinds, hot and unforgiving on my face. My body felt stiff, like I’d been lying there for years instead of hours. Every part of me was sore, my shoulders, my back, even my jaw from clenching it too hard.I rolled out of bed with a low groan. The floor was cold, the kind of cold that should’ve woken me up instantly, but my head felt stuffed with cotton. Heavy thoughts. Regret. All of it clinging to me like a second skin.The shower didn’t help much either. I stood under the stream longer than necessary, hoping maybe the water would wash last night out of me, the silence, the unanswered calls, the awful realization that she really didn’t want to see me. The weight settled even heavier in my chest when I turned the

  • THE LINE BETWEEN US    CHAPTER EIGHTY TWO

    DAMIANThe house was too quiet.Quiet in the way that made every echo feel louder, sharper, like even the air wanted to remind me how badly I’d messed up. I sat at my desk, the same old, battered desk I always sat at whenever Autumn came over to tutor me. My fingers hovered uselessly over my notebook, but I wasn’t seeing the lines on the paper. I wasn’t even pretending to study.All I could think about was her voice.The way it trembled. The way every word she’d spoken outside sounded like it was pulled out of her with force, like each one hurt.God, she’d been crying.I rubbed my forehead hard, dragging my palm down my face. I had replayed the conversation so many times I could hear her voice in the damn walls. Every time she said something, every time her voice cracked, something in my chest dropped like a stone. And I deserved it. I deserved every second of that feeling.I knew I’d hurt her before. I’m not clueless or blind to my own behavior, just stupid enough to pretend it didn’

  • THE LINE BETWEEN US    CHAPTER EIGHTY ONE

    I woke up with a jolt.For a second, I didn’t know where I was. My heart hammered, my breath caught somewhere between my lungs and throat, and the room was too dark, too quiet, too… wrong. The kind of wrong that made my skin prickle before my mind even caught up.My hand fumbled for my phone beside me.9:07 p.m.I sat up so fast the blanket twisted around my legs. Mom always woke me for dinner. Always. Even on her worst days, she’d knock on my door and call my name the same way she had my entire life, softly, like she didn’t want to disturb me even when that was the point.But tonight, nothing.No knock. No call. No soft “Autumn, dinner.”A thin sheet of unease slid over my skin.I pushed off the bed, legs shaky from sleep, and opened my door. The hallway light was dim, only the small lamp downstairs glowing faintly against the walls. I held the railing as I walked down, each step quiet, too quiet.Halfway to the living room, I slowed.Mom was asleep on the couch.Except… she wasn’t r

  • THE LINE BETWEEN US    CHAPTER EIGHTY

    The moment the door clicked shut behind me, the silence pressed in from every corner. My pulse still throbbed in my ears, loud enough that it felt like the house was vibrating with it. I didn’t realize how stiff my fingers were until I tried unclenching them and they responded like they’d forgotten how to move. I forced myself to breathe, slowly, quietly, like maybe if I made enough silence inside myself, the storm I’d just unleashed wouldn’t swallow me whole.I walked up the stairs, every step heavy and mechanical, and pushed open my bedroom door.Taylor was sitting on the floor beside my bed, his back against the mattress, phone to his ear. He was smiling, like really smiling. His foot bounced against the carpet, restless, excited.“Yes, Mum, I told you, I’m fine,” he said, laughing a little. “No, I didn’t eat the hospital food, ew. I had cereal. And toast. Mum. Mum. Listen. Just rest, okay? I’ll come soon.”Then his eyes lifted and met mine.The smile brightened.He didn’t even hav

More Chapters

You may also like

Explore and read good novels for free
Free access to a vast number of good novels on GoodNovel app. Download the books you like and read anywhere & anytime.
Read books for free on the app
SCAN CODE TO READ ON APP
DMCA.com Protection Status