KaidenI mindlessly scrolled through old messages while waiting for his texts.He didn’t text back after I sent him the location and that made me a little sad because I was expecting him to barrel in here.I had left his house without a word, without a backward glance, hoping no, expecting that he would come after me. That he would notice my absence, realize something was missing, and care enough to follow.But the phone remained silent.I sighed, running a hand down my face. Maybe it was childish, maybe it was dramatic, but I didn’t care. Sage was always there, always pushing his way into spaces that didn’t belong to him, always acting like he had some special claim. And the professor let him. He entertained his whining, let him get away with things I never could.Something he could never do with me. I have to be nagging if I want him to spend time with me. I didn’t want it to resort to this but it looks like I have no choice.I needed to remind him, remind myself that I wasn’t just
SageI knew I had to be careful because when I saw him standing in the doorway of my apartment, leaning against the frame with that same smug confidence, I felt an odd mixture of excitement and apprehension.His piercing gaze swept over me before he stepped inside without waiting for an invitation.I shut the door behind him, folding my arms. “I don’t want to chat with you.”“Why is that?”I gaped at him like he was crazy, maybe he was.“Are you really asking me that? You sent your men to attack me. I was sent to the hospital twice on your account. What the hell is wrong with you?”“It’s not personal. You are just collateral damage.”“You are crazy for saying that. Get the hell out of my house. I do not want to chat with a psycho like you.”“You have no choice because I am in your house, Sage. Didn’t your mother teach you not to open the door for strangers? I could kill you and nobody would do anything. Kaiden doesn’t even care about you.”The last part stung, I admit. I subtly looke
SageHe and I sat across from each other at the dining table, a meal between us that neither of us seemed particularly eager to finish.I forced myself to eat, but my appetite had dwindled the moment I noticed the way he kept glancing at his watch. Every few minutes, he would steal a look at the time, his fingers subtly tapping against the edge of the table, his mind clearly elsewhere.I hope it just wasn’t on that bastard, Kaiden because I would be so fucking furious. I am here, eating dinner with him and you are thinking about another person.I set my fork down. “Are you expecting someone?”He looked up, startled by my question, before shaking his head. “No.”I wasn’t convinced. “Then why do you keep checking the time?”He exhaled quietly. “I was thinking of going for a walk.”A walk? That meant he was leaving. Going somewhere that wasn’t here, with me.“Do you want me to come?” I asked, my voice carefully casual, even as my chest tightened with something close to desperation.I wa
SageThe past few weeks had been a blur of back-to-back work, photoshoots, meetings, and barely any sleep. Ever since I left the professor’s house, I threw myself into my career with reckless abandon, pushing every other thought, every lingering emotion into the background.It didn’t help that the professor didn’t come like I expected him to. He made that whole show of asking me for my address just to bail on me?I was a fool for thinking that, a really big fool.It was easier this way. Work didn’t betray me. Work didn’t make me question my worth.But exhaustion was creeping in. I could feel it in my bones as I walking to my car after wrapping up another long day. Martin really meant it when I said I was at the peak of my career so he utilized the chance to book me till events were clashing.I had barely closed the door when I caught movement from the corner of my eye.Too late.A hand wrenched the door open before I could lock it, and something hard slammed into the side of my head
SageThe soft morning light filtered through the curtains as I lay in bed, listening for any sign of movement from the professor’s room. My heart pounded against my ribs as I replayed last night’s events in my head.It was perfect. Or at least, it was perfect for me. I had done everything to make him stay, to make him look at me the way he used to. He hadn’t even stirred when I touched him, and yet, despite everything, I still felt… anxious.Would he kick me out when he finds out I took advantage of him or would he interprète it as a show of desperation.That I reached the end of my ropes and had to do something to tame the voices in my head before they swallowed me whole.I heard the low groan followed by the rustling of sheets.He was awake.Finally.Forcing a bright smile, I walked into his room just as he sat up, rubbing his temples. He looked disoriented, blinking at me before running a hand through his hair.“What… happened?” he asked groggily, his voice rough with sleep.“You
KaidenThe steady beeping of the heart monitor was the first thing I noticed when I woke up again. The ache spread through every inch of my body and I remembered what landed me in this position.I groaned, shifting slightly against the stiff hospital bed. My ribs protested with a sharp pain stabbing through my side.I reached out and touched my face, my face was swollen and my lips were split. I closed my eyes to tame the anger that resurfaced. Then, my phone rang.My first thought was to ask Martin to get it for me but it dawned on me that he had left. That’s why the room was so quiet.He would have been making a series of calls to save my career from impending doom.I turned my head slowly, wincing as I reached for it on the bedside table. The screen glowed with a number I recognized instantly. I had saved it out of instinct when I first got that unexpected message, when he had asked for my location.I hesitated, my thumb hovering over the screen.Why was he calling?Curiosity won
Sage I was pacing, so sick with worry that I couldn’t breathe.I was so crazy to even do such a thing to Kaiden. Even if we were no longer talking, I was being cruel.I am cruel.I buried my head in my hands and shook them, I was fucked. My eyes widened when the door clicked open, and the professor stepped in.I couldn’t get a read on his face so my heartbeat increased because I had no idea what was going on in his head.He kept quiet and sat on the sofa, deep in thoughts. I couldn’t ask the question that was in my mind.How is Kaiden?I mean, did I even have the right to ask that?I should have gone with him but I didn’t, yet I was more curious than a cat.“Are you happy?” He asked.My brows furrowed, “excuse me?”“Are you fucking happy? He is in the hospital because of what you did!”“Me? How is that my fault?” I tried to defend myself.He chuckled, “How is it your fault? Are you fucking kidding me, Sage? You texted those people. You made them put Kaiden in the hospital.”“So what
SageFuck.Fuck, fuck, fuck.That’s what I heard him mumbling under his breath as he scrambled to find his clothes. His movements were frantic, almost desperate, like he wanted to erase what had just happened.Tears burned at the back of my eyes, but I refused to let them fall.Is that how much he regretted sleeping with me?Was I that terrible that he couldn’t entertain the idea of sleeping with me? I was so pathetic.It’s like I was forcing myself on him and even at that, he didn’t want me. Maybe it was time to count my losses and move on before I end up losing everything together.I shifted, trying to sit up, but a sharp pain shot through my body. My muscles ached, my skin still tingling from his touch. I winced, biting my lip to keep from making a sound.The way he fucked me made me believe that it wasn’t out of want that he did it, he fucked me because he wanted to prove a point.Which he did.He was already dressed by the time I managed to push myself up on the bed. He wouldn’t
KaidenWhen Martin dropped me in front of the professor’s house. I barely waited for him to drive off before I dug out my phone. My fingers hovered over the screen for a moment before I hit Bryan’s name.He was the only one who was making an attempt to help me right now. He answered on the second ring, his voice calm and clipped, like always.“Kaiden?”“Yeah, it’s me.” I moved to the far side of the room, away from the windows, and lowered my voice. “Something weird’s going on. I need to tell you about it.”“What kind of weird?” His tone sharpened immediately.I told him everything. The prepaid boutiques. The law firm. The condo being bought out. The way no one could or would tell me who was behind it. I could practically hear him frowning on the other end of the line.“You think it’s Sage?” he asked quietly.“No,” I said quickly, too quickly. “I don’t know. I mean—I don’t want to think that. And it’s not the professor either. I know that much. They would tell me if they are trying
KaidenI stared at the silver-trimmed envelope resting on the counter between the professor and me like it was some kind of explosive. The award ceremony. My name was on the guest list, of course. It had to be. I was the damn honoree.“I have my own invite, thanks to my connections,” the professor said casually, leaning against the kitchen counter. He swirled his coffee slowly, watching the dark liquid spiral. “But I think Sage should go with you.”Sage, sitting cross-legged on the couch and peeling a tangerine, looked up with a sheepish smile. “Would that be okay with you?”I didn’t even think about it before I answered. “No.”Their expressions changed almost instantly, surprise flickered across the professor’s features and Sage’s smile faltered.“It’s enough that Sage’s already in the spotlight,” I said, trying to keep my voice even, my words reasonable. “With the way everyone’s been talking and taking photos, I don’t want to put him in harm’s way, more than I already have. If you
Kaiden The clock on the bedside read 3:12 a.m. I rolled onto my side, confused by the soft glow seeping under the bedroom door. I blinked the sleep from my eyes, and when I looked over, Sage was still fast asleep beside me, his breathing steady and rhythmic. I reached out, touched his hair lightly, then slid out of bed. The hallway was silent except for the distant hum of the fridge and the occasional rustle of the wind brushing the windows. I padded barefoot across the wood floor, and as I neared the living room, the scent of whiskey hit me first. That, and the sound of papers being shuffled with irritation more than purpose. The soft overhead light in the corner cast a gold sheen across the professor’s back. He was hunched over the coffee table, glass of whiskey in one hand, papers spread out like an autopsy, calm chaos wrapped in tension. He didn’t look up when I entered. “You’re still awake?” I asked, keeping my voice low. “I have work to do,” he said, not looking at me. His
KaidenI watched Sage’s chest rise and fall steadily, his breathing finally even and calm after a long, exhausting day. The faint hum of the heater filled the small apartment as the evening air drifted colder through the windows. He looked peaceful in sleep, peaceful in a way that didn’t match anything we’d been living through lately. It was a lie his body told, one I was grateful for, even if I knew it wouldn’t last. The last thing I needed was for him to keep worrying about the unknown.Today took a toll on him.I sat at the edge of the couch, elbows resting on my knees, hands folded, but my thoughts weren’t still. They kept drifting back to the question he asked earlier about whether we’d ever go back to how things were. And now I knew for certain: we couldn’t. Not with this storm closing in around us, not when every time I let my guard down, something tried to take Sage from me.I haven’t even figured out how to apologize to the professor, it took me a lot of thinking to realize
SageThe next morning, Kaiden and I walked to school in silence. The meal we shared was so brief and he stayed with me. The professor didn’t come home and when I called him, he said he was working late and we should enjoy ourselves.I knew it was because he didn’t want to spend time with Kaiden. After their argument, they have been tense with each other.I didn’t want to Interfere in their problems as it could escalate into something I wouldn’t be able to control.I looked at Kaiden, I know we have already talked about this but I was so curious.I wanted to ask him again about where he’d really been that day, but the tension in his jaw warned me off. Still, I couldn’t help myself. “So,” I started, kicking a loose pebble on the sidewalk, “you never really told me where you went. Like, actually went.” His steps didn’t falter, but his grip tightened around the strap of his backpack. “I told you. I needed to clear my head.” “Yeah, but that could mean anything,” I pressed. “You just
SageI stood just outside the hospital’s main entrance, staring at the parking lot like it was a war zone. The discharge papers were crumpled slightly in my grip. I could feel my fingers tremble, but I didn’t loosen them. The sun was bright, the day clear, but I felt like I was standing in the middle of a fog, one that hadn’t lifted since I was attacked.Kaiden mentioned he would come and pick me up, hence the hesitation. I felt like if he wasn’t here to do that, I wouldn’t go. “Ready?” His voice pulled me out of my head.I turned toward him. He had one hand in his pocket, the other adjusting the strap of my duffel bag slung over his shoulder. His hair was a little messy, like he hadn’t even bothered with a brush this morning, and his hoodie looked slept in. But his eyes, his eyes were alert. “I don’t know if ready’s the word I’d use,” I admitted. My voice sounded too thin to my own ears. “I feel like I’m being pushed out of safety and right back into the middle of whatever this me
KaidenI slept at my place after the detective dropped me off. He was looking at me like he had a lot to say about what happened but I didn’t.Yes, I overreacted but I couldn’t go back there. I felt suffocated and the only thing I needed was freedom. I needed to find my answers and not let it extend to my relationship.I decided to go see Detective Bryan. The man in charge of narcotics. The one who might know what the hell was really going on. I hadn’t told Sage or the professor anything. Not yet. I couldn’t, not until I had something real. Something more than just paranoia and late-night shadows tailing me.I sat hunched over my laptop in a dingy little café two blocks from my apartment, the place reeking of burnt espresso and desperation. I typed in “Detective Bryan, Narcotics Division, city PD” and hit search. A few articles came up. He was decorated, involved in several high-profile raids. One article had a photo, square jaw, stern face, early forties. Not someone you’d expect to
SageI woke to silence. Not the peaceful kind, the kind that sets your skin crawling with dread, like the air itself is holding its breath. The clock on the wall read a little past 3am and I could see the shadows stretched along the floor, motionless. I looked around and noticed with a slight disappointment that Kaiden wasn’t here. I blinked twice and turned my head toward the small couch across the room. No professor either.My heart sank.They were gone. Both of them.I have never felt so alone. I thought they would both stay with me so I won’t be scared. But I was a big boy and could handle myself.I sat up slowly, the sheets slipping off my chest as I scanned the dim room. Maybe they went for a walk. Maybe Kaiden needed air and the professor tagged along. Maybe I was being paranoid.Or maybe something was very, very wrong.I was about to slide out of bed when the doorknob turned.I froze.The door creaked open, and the harsh fluorescent light from the hallway spilled into the r
KaidenI left the hospital with a gnawing unease in my gut. I hadn’t told Sage or the Professor the full truth, that I needed to test Raines myself, to see if he was really on our side or if he was playing us. If I had voiced my suspicions, the professor would have warned me against it, and Sage… well, Sage would have insisted on coming with me, injuries be damned. But this was something I had to do alone. I couldn’t pretend for the life of me. If the detective wasn’t on our side then I needed to know now, to save myself the trouble of finding out later.I know that the professor was just trying to be cautious but the detective was kind of my friend so I needed to give him the benefit of the doubt.I stared at my phone for a long moment before making the call, my thumb hovering over his contact. This was a gamble, if he was dirty, I might be tipping my hand. But if he was clean... I needed to know. Taking a steadying breath, I hit dial. He answered on the third ring. "Kaiden?"