LOGINEight Months Too LateNEO“What happened to Mom?” My thoughts had jumbled into one big mess, my heart pounding relentlessly. I couldn't sit still anymore. Gripping the phone tighter, I paced the room back and forth as Charlie’s sniffles filled my ear.“She—” Charlie’s breath hitched, making cold sweat break on my skin. “She collapsed.”“What?” My stomach tightened into dread-filled knots as I struggled to control my breathing. “Where are you right now Charlie?”“I’m at the hospital.” His voice shook with every word. “An ambulance came to take her.”Grabbing my jacket from the couch, I headed towards the door. “Which hospital? I'm coming right now okay, stay put.”Dr. Hayes got to her feet just as I was about to go out. “Everything okay honey?” I barely heard her voice.Taking in a deep breath, I turned to face her. “It’s my mom. She’s at the hospital.”“What happened?”“My brother said she collapsed.” I swallowed hard, blinking back the tears. “I have to go now.”“Neo,” she called out
If He Saw MeNEOLavender, coffee, and that weird vanilla candle my therapist liked hit my nostrils as soon as I entered through the doors of her office. Honestly, I didn’t know why I was here after avoiding the place and her messages for months now. But like the good therapist she was, Dr. Hayes continued to leave messages now and then, until I decided to come on my own today. I sat on the edge of the couch, fingers picking at the sleeve of my hoodie while Dr. Hayes watched me from across the room. “You know,” she said eventually, “most people call before disappearing for four months. I glanced at the clock and the awards lined up at the side of the room. She had received more of them than I could count.“I was busy.”She lifted a light brow at me through her glasses and inched closer, lacing her hands together and placing them on her knee. “You’re an artist Neo. You’ve been busy since the day I met you.” Her brown eyes held mine. “That excuse won’t work.”“Okay. Fair.” I sighe
It Wasn’t Your Fault, RossDANIELLeaving Neo in bed was the most difficult thing ever. I could still feel his warm mouth wrapped around my cock and those irresistible eyes holding me captive. The way he’d rubbed his nose on my neck and breathed me in even while he was asleep. The blooming feeling tingled in my chest, spreading throughout my body and mixing with the cold wind as I squinted through the fog in my helmet, revving the engine harder. I sped through the familiar streets I thought I’d never see again since the last time I was here. Three years. Three years and nothing had changed in this town. Not the curious eyes of the people looking through their porches or the shitty roads with potholes. Yet here I was. Riding through that one road that led to West Calder. And as much as I might have liked to deny it, there was no point anymore. Neo Vale had crawled his way into my frozen heart with a lighter and made it his home. The thought of someone getting close enough to be
What Fear Leaves BehindDANIELThe words lingered between us long after neither of us spoke.Rain hammered against the windows, filling the silence Neo refused to break. I looked away first. My chest rose and fell unevenly as I dragged a hand through my hair, the other still hanging stiffly at my side, fingers locked around the grip of the gun.I wasn’t sure whether I was trying to calm myself down… or stop myself from saying something we’d both regret.Neo took a step closer. His gaze dropped to the weapon still in my hand.I stepped back, jaw clenching hard.“Don’t.”“Don’t what?”“Don’t keep looking at me like that.”“Like what?”My heart rate spiked.“Like you understand what almost happened tonight.”He held my gaze, never looking away.“I think I understand better than you think.”“No.” The laugh that left me was short and bitter. “You don’t.”Thunder rattled the windows. The sky outside had started to lighten, the first thin edge of daybreak cutting through the storm. I hadn’
One Mistake NEODaniel had told me to stay put, but the voice I just heard belonged to a girl. Young. Soft.She couldn't have been more than a teenager.Peeking out of the corner, I found Daniel with his gun raised, pointing at a small figure slowly making her way out of the darkness.I was right. It was a teenager, roughly sixteen. Her big blue eyes blinked at me as I emerged from the corner and stood behind Daniel. She clutched what I believed to be a letter in her hand, with dark clothes and boots, looking like a goth Barbie. “Neo,” she repeated, her hand going to her mouth and her eyes watering. Water dripped from her hair and clothes to the floor. “You didn't reply to any of my letters.” “Neo,” Daniel growled, his voice sharp and hard. “Get out of here.” His hand remained outstretched with the gun. “Put the gun down, Daniel.” I was at his side now, and could see the muscle in his jaw tighten and his hand flex. “She’s just a child. She’s not harmful.”“You don’t know that.”
After MidnightDANIELNeo wasn’t himself the whole day. Though he convinced me he was fine. I knew he was lying just from looking at his face and how quiet he’d been.I hated how useless I was then—hated how I could only sit back and watch. The faint sound of a piano came from somewhere outside my room, a soft note that drifted to my ears and made me sit up in my bed. Grabbing my phone from the nightstand, I checked the time. 2 AM.Only one person could be behind the piano at this time of the night. Curiosity and concern tangled together, pushing me to my feet and out of my room. The house was quiet. Then the piano started again, this time a bit louder as I followed the sound. It was coming from deeper in the house. East Wing. The music room I’d only glanced at once during the walkthrough. I didn't turn on any lights. Flaps silent on the floor, I moved down the hall, past the windows that showed tiny cracks of lightning in the night sky. The double doors to the music room stood
At The RooftopDANIELI shouldn’t have let him walk off alone.I knew the moment he stood up from that table, he was seconds away from falling apart. Neo hid things well. He must have had years of practice, but his eyes always gave him away. Everytime.And right now, they were glassy and distant, a
What I Shouldn’t Feel NEOThat was the plan. Get laid, forget, move on.Simple enough. Except it was pushing past midnight, and I was still here, wide awake, staring at the ceiling like an idiot.The more I tried not to think about him, the harder it got. Every sound from the next room made it wor
Barely BreathingDANIEL’S POVThe ride to Oxford Street was quiet, just like any other ride I’d had with Neo. He had his phone in hand, texting Sasha, probably to tell her we were close. Outside the window, lights shone brightly in greys and gold. It was late afternoon, but the lighting still stood
Some Things Don’t ChangeNEO’S POVSasha stirred her coffee slowly, the spoon clinking against the glass. “You still take it black?” she asked, smiling like it was an inside joke.“You mean coffee? Some things just don’t change,” I replied, although too many things had.Watching her now felt strang







