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หน้าหลัก / LGBTQ+ / The One I Can't Escape / Chapter 74: The Name That Changes Everything

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Chapter 74: The Name That Changes Everything

ผู้เขียน: Angel
last update ปรับปรุงล่าสุด: 2025-08-06 08:27:55

The next day breaks in thin strips of gray light through the hospital blinds, dust catching in the beams like suspended time. The room is quieter than yesterday—Oliver’s breathing is more even now, his color better. His hand rests gently on top of the blanket, fingers twitching every so often, as if dreams are tugging at him.

I’m sitting by the window, nursing a cold coffee. Isabella’s curled in the chair across from the bed, a book in her lap she hasn’t turned a page of in over an hour. Dad stands just outside the room, phone pressed to his ear, pacing slowly.

It’s calm. For now.

Then there’s a knock at the door.

Three soft raps.

Dad turns immediately. I rise to my feet. Isabella straightens. We all exchange a look before Dad walks over and cracks the door open.

Two men in plainclothes stand on the other side.

I recognize them instantly.

Officer Raines—calm, mid-forties, trimmed beard, sharp eyes—and his younger partner, Officer Keller, the quiet one who always seems to be seeing mor
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  • The One I Can't Escape   Chapter 80: Truth Laid Bare

    The ride back to the hospital feels longer than it should. Every streetlight flashes across the windshield like a slow metronome, ticking off the seconds I’m not ready for.Dad drives in silence, Mom staring out the window. None of us speak, and yet the weight of what just happened follows us like a shadow.When we finally step into Oliver’s room, Isabella is already there. She rises quickly from her chair, searching my face.“What did they say?”I glance at Oliver before answering. He’s propped up against the pillows, paler than he should be but awake, eyes alert. His gaze locks on mine, steady, waiting.I clear my throat. “Can we have a minute?” I ask Isabella softly.She hesitates, then nods, brushing her fingers across Oliver’s hand before slipping past me. Dad and Mom follow, closing the door behind them.Now it’s just me and him.For a while, I just stand there, caught in the hum of the machines and the soft shuffle of sheets as he adjusts his position.“Jude,” he says finally,

  • The One I Can't Escape   Chapter 79: The Last Word

    The officer at the desk eyes me carefully when I make the request.“i want to speak with him?”He nods. “Yes. But Just for a few minutes.”Agent Raines hesitates, but after a beat he gestures to the hall. “Five minutes. No more.”Dad starts to protest, but Mom puts a hand on his arm. “Let him,” she whispers.The walk down the corridor feels longer than it is, every step echoing in the sterile quiet. At the end, a heavy door clicks open, and I’m led into a small interview room. The table is bolted to the floor, the chairs scuffed with years of use.And then he’s there.Zane sits shackled at the wrists, his posture rigid but his expression showing nothing not even remorse. unreadable. His dark eyes lift when I enter, but he doesn’t speak. Not even when the officer steps out and leaves us in the silence.I lower myself into the chair across from him. For a moment, we just stare at each other, two people who’d once trusted too much and lost more than either of us imagined.“You don’t need

  • The One I Can't Escape   Chapter 78: Waking Bonds

    The hallway feels oddly hollow after the footsteps fade. The few teammates still standing glance at one another before one of them—a boy with sandy hair and soft eyes—steps forward.“Hey… we’re sorry about the guys who left,” he says quietly. “They don’t speak for all of us.”Another nods in agreement. “Yeah. We came here for Oliver, not to start anything. Some people just… forget that.”Isabella exhales, her shoulders settling a fraction. “It’s nothing,” she says, her voice gentler now. “Tensions are high. I understand.”Dad clears his throat, his voice steady but warm. “What matters most right now is Oliver’s recovery. Everything else can wait.”Isabella’s eyes soften, and then she glances toward the door behind her. “Speaking of him…” Her lips curve into the smallest smile. “He’s awake.”The mood shifts instantly—lighter, electric. She pushes the door open and waves them inside. “Come on, he’ll want to see you.”The rest of the team files in quietly, the sound of their sneakers sof

  • The One I Can't Escape   Chapter 77: Uninvited Truths

    Dad’s voice cuts through the hum of the corridor.“What are you still doing on your phone? I’ve been standing here waiting for you. Who are you talking to?”I glance up, forcing my thumb to slow down on the screen.“A friend,” I say, slipping the phone halfway into my pocket. “He… uh, just told me he’s going to surprise me.”Dad gives me a skeptical look, the kind that could peel back a lie if you hold it too long.I add, in my head, I wasn’t going to tell him I was talking to Mom, after all.He straightens his jacket. “Speaking of surprises… here’s one.”I follow his gaze toward the far end of the hallway—and freeze.A wave of crimson floods toward us. Not blood. Jerseys.Oliver’s entire Crimson Lions squad is here, a dozen or more, their team colors practically shouting against the beige hospital walls. They carry everything from small bobblehead mascots to stuffed animals so oversized they have to be hugged with both arms. Someone even has a foam lion head tucked under one elbow.T

  • The One I Can't Escape   Chapter 76: Slippery Ground

    The sunlight outside the station feels too bright, like it’s pushing at my eyes instead of warming them. The sidewalk smells faintly of exhaust and hot pavement, though it’s not even noon yet.I raise a hand to flag down the first taxi I see. The driver—a middle-aged man with heavy eyelids and a fading baseball cap—barely glances at me as I slide into the back seat.“City Hospital,” I tell him.He nods once, pulls into traffic.The car jolts forward, and I pull out my phone. My hands still feel faintly cold, the way they always do after an argument I’m not sure was actually an argument. The memory of Zane’s voice still sits in my ears—calm, insistent, too steady for someone guilty. Or maybe that’s exactly how guilt sounds when it’s practiced.I open the group chat with Jace and Lea and start typing.Me:Just saw Zane. I can’t say for sure he’s guilty anymore.It takes less than a minute for Jace to respond.Jace:Careful, man. You’re treading on slippery ground. One wrong step and you

  • The One I Can't Escape   Chapter 75: Through the Glass

    An hour drips by in the kind of slow crawl that makes you feel like time’s decided to take a nap, too. The officers wait in the lounge, quiet but watchful. Dad paces near the nurses’ station, pretending to read a clipboard he’s not actually looking at. I’m leaning against the wall, staring at the beige tile like it might give me answers.Oliver’s been still all this time, his breathing steady, his face soft in the dim light. Then, without warning—A sharp yelp slices the silence.I whip around. Isabella’s standing at Oliver’s bedside, hands over her mouth, eyes wide. “He’s awake!” she blurts, voice trembling but loud enough to carry down the hall.The sound draws all of us at once. Dad’s already moving toward the door. I’m right behind him, heart hammering, but the officers get there first.Raines steps forward, voice firm. “We need to speak with him. Alone.”Dad hesitates. “He just woke up—”“It won’t take long,” Keller says, already easing past him. “We can’t risk memory fading or d

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