ANMELDENELI..The day had already turned into an inky blue sky, and just a few stars had already crept out when I returned to Zane’s place.I locked the door shut behind me, the clicking echoing in the silence.In the living room, Zane sat on a three-seater sofa, his fingers tapping over the keyboard, the screen light bleeding onto his face.The moment I stepped closer, his eyes drifted to me.I noticed it—the tension that settled in his jaw, the deep creases lining his forehead like it had been there for hours.Instantly my shoulders went rigid, my fingers twitching by my side.“I’m sorry,” I quickly said, “I knew I said I wasn’t going to spend time.”Neither the tension nor the creases on his face vanished. “Where did you go?”It should’ve been a simple question. One that required a simple answer. But memories of our past few days resurfaced, making it harder to just say I went to see John.The living room stilled, like it too was waiting for my answer.“I was in my hostel,” I said, my he
ZANE..5:00 pmI stared at the number, my fingers hovering uselessly over the keyboard of the laptop. The project I was working on filled the screen, half finished, demanding my attention.Yet my mind wandered back to Eli and why he wasn’t back home yet. I mean he had said he wasn’t going to spend time. My jaw tightened and my hand reached towards my phone. I was about to send another quick ‘where are you?’ ‘When are you coming back?’It felt simple. But my gaze dropped to the other messages I had left in his DM. The same—‘where are you?’Slowly, I lowered my phone back on my study desk. I didn’t think I needed anyone to tell me a third message wouldn’t be a bother.With a sigh, I leaned back into the chair, pinching the bridge of my nose.Maybe if I knew where he was, I would have picked him up. But then it hit me.Eli didn’t tell me where he was going.A thought slipped into my mind. John.My stomach twisted instantly, a metallic taste crawling up the back of my throat.Was El
ELI..The heat started low then it spiked.“Are you doing this because of those times I had sex with other guys?” John repeated, his words striking a chord in me.I waited for something—words, anything— to leave me. But nothing.Instead I just stared at him. Stared until I could no longer think of the money he had lost. Stared until I could think of was: ‘How could I have been so blind?’My chest tightened.All this time I’d never truly believed John understood what he was doing.When he’d slept with other people. When he’d brushed my feelings aside. Or when he introduced his sex partners to me.I’d always thought he saw me as a friend and there was no way him sleeping around could hurt a friend.I mean whoever Louis slept with never affected me.Maybe he genuinely couldn’t see what I felt for him.But having him stand before me asking if I was punishing him for it. As if he’d always known. “Eli?” John continued, his voice cracking. “Is this about them? It’s about them, right?”M
ELI . . “What happened to the money we won?” John wrapped his fingers around my hand, his grip tight. “You’re going to want to sit down for this," he murmured. A chill fired down my spine, and my stomach clenched. What could possibly have happened to a million dollars? My mind began to race. After guiding me to the chair and allowing me to sit, he raked his fingers through his hair. “You know you’ve always wanted to leave this country as soon as we graduated,” he began. My brow furrowed. “What does that have to do with the money?” “Second semester is barely weeks away,” John continued, “and within five months we would be done with that.” “John.” Knits formed in my stomach. “So… because of that I wanted to surprise you,” he said. “You know, I started planning everything out. Flights...” John paused before swinging around. He grabbed his phone from the table, and after flicking his fingers, he thrust an image in front of my face. It was a duplex on the beach. One that peopl
ELI..After the call ended with Louis, I stood up from the bed and walked to the mirror where I stared at my reflection.Every inch of me was covered in hickeys, from my neck to my waist. My fingers lingered on the one close to my mating gland. It looked redder than the rest.I remembered how his teeth sank in there, like he was a second away from claiming me.I shook my head. Don’t read between the lines, Eli.I started undressing myself.My eyes dragged over my stomach and for a moment, I wondered if he still found my body attractive.Stepping into the bathroom, I turned on the shower. As the drops of water cascaded down, I couldn't help but consider how I would approach John. What would his reaction be if I told him my decision? Would he start hating me?Would he think I betrayed him? I sighed and lifted my face allowing the water to tap my skin. I was drowned in my thoughts that I didn’t hear the bathroom door open. Not until I felt something warm embrace me did my eyes snap
ELI..When my eyes fluttered open, I could barely remember what day it was. Or how long had gone by.My limbs felt heavy. Not in a painful way. In a way that just felt exhausted, like I had used every muscle in my body past my limits.Keeping my eyes closed, I tried to hold onto every fragment of memory. The way his hands lingered on my skin. The way he dragged his tongue up my neck. For a moment I wondered if he had forgotten I was pregnant.But they all slipped away before I could grasp it.A slow breath escaped me, as I decided to get up and leave. I was about to peel off the blanket and crawl out of bed when he locked his hand around my waist.“Where are you heading to?” Zane muttered, his voice having that groggy lilt. “Are you trying to run like you did that day?”His voice vibrated through me, heat rushing to my face. He didn’t say a word again. Just held me like I could vanish any moment from now.Still trapped in his embrace, I searched for my phone.My stomach dropped. I







