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Lahat ng Kabanata ng THE WEIGHT OF LOVING YOU: Kabanata 51 - Kabanata 60

95 Kabanata

048

LIAMI tightened my tie in front of the mirror and exhaled through my nose. “Don’t be weird. It’s just Jasper.”But my reflection didn’t buy it.It had been almost two years. Two whole years since I last saw him.The last time was at my mom’s funeral, and even then, we barely talked. Grief had made everything blurry. Even Jasper.I adjusted the knot again. Too tight. Too formal. I pulled it loose and left the top button open. Better. More like me.It’s not that I didn’t want to see him. It’s not even that I didn’t love Jessica. I did. More than anything. But there was this itch in my brain I couldn’t scratch—memories I never asked for but remembered anyway. Like the way Jessica used to light up when Jasper texted her in college. The way she used to say his name when she didn’t know I was listening.Back then, I’d lie awake wondering if she liked him. I’d stare at the ceiling while she dozed beside me, trying not to think about how her phone always buzzed more when he was back in tow

049

JESSICA “What the hell are you doing here, Jasper?!”I barely heard my own voice over the pounding in my chest. My heart shot straight into my throat the second I saw him, standing there like a memory I hadn’t asked for but suddenly needed.Then I turned to Liam.Because why the hell was Jasper in my kitchen?!Liam didn’t flinch. He just gave me that stupid calm smile of his and said, “That..” he pointed a lazy thumb at Jasper, “is what’s going on. He surprised us.”That voice. That smile. Ugh. My wall crumbled on the spot.I looked back at Jasper. His face had changed. More lines, maybe. Or maybe I just hadn’t seen him smile in years. The moment my eyes locked on his, it hit me like a soft punch to the chest.I ran into his arms before my brain could catch up.“God,” I breathed into his shoulder. “I’ve missed you so much.”He held me like he meant it, like he’d been waiting too. His palm rubbed small circles on my back, and for a second, it felt like we were seventeen again, stan

050

JESSICA I rushed around the room, towel wrapped around my wet hair, underwear in one hand, shirt in the other, and zero clue where I’d kicked my heels off last night. My alarm had betrayed me again—snoozed one too many times—and now I was thirty minutes behind and very much panicking.Meanwhile, Liam leaned against the doorframe, shirtless, arms folded, that lazy smirk on his face like he was the king of slow mornings.“You’re beautiful when you’re mad at your alarm clock,” he said, voice still husky from sleep.I shot him a look. “I’m mad because someone kept me up half the night.”“Wasn’t complaining then,” he teased, strolling into the room like we weren’t racing time. His fingers tugged gently at the towel on my head, letting it fall loose, damp curls tumbling down my back. “Still not complaining now.”“Liam,” I warned, pulling my shirt over my head as I tried to stay on task, limbs moving with urgency while my brain lagged behind.He stepped behind me, arms sliding around my w

051

JESSICA I didn’t even shut down my system properly. I just wanted out. My heart was racing for no reason—unless you count the fact that my husband was downstairs, and I’d rather be in his arms than breathing recycled office air for one more minute.My hands were shaky as I stuffed papers into my bag, not even checking if they were important. I slammed my laptop shut mid-email. Sorry to whoever was getting that half-written “Best regards.” I could barely hear anything beyond the thump of my heart and the hum of the elevator ticking its way up.“Jess?” a voice called behind me.I looked up too quickly. My coworker, Halima, tilted her head with concern.“You good?” she asked. “You look like you're about to sprint out of here.”I forced a smile, one that didn’t quite reach my eyes. “Yeah. Just tired.”She gave me a skeptical once-over. “Tired doesn’t make people forget their ID badge and toss their mouse in their handbag.”I blinked. Sure enough, the wireless mouse was sitting right on t

052

JESSICAI woke up to heat—slow, crawling heat that pulsed low in my belly. Liam’s arm was heavy across my waist, his chest warm and bare against my back, his breath thick and slow against my neck. But it wasn’t just that. It was the way my body ached. The way I could already feel the damp throb between my legs. The way his hardness pressed against me like he belonged there, like he’d grown there overnight.I didn’t move at first. Just breathed. Just listened.The room was dim, lit faintly by the streetlight bleeding through the blinds. The AC hummed low, the fan creaked with every slow spin, and Liam slept on—solid, steady, and completely unaware of how badly I needed him. Or maybe he knew. Maybe that was why he was already hard. Maybe he’d dreamt of me just like I’d dreamt of him.I shifted—slow, subtle, enough to feel the shape of him, stiff and hot through the thin barrier of my sleep shorts. My heart skipped.God.I pushed back, just a little. Just to test him. His fingers t

053

LIAMI didn’t answer.Instead, I gently slid her off me, careful, like she’d break if I did it too fast. She let me, eyes still burning into me like I owed her a better explanation. Maybe I did.But I didn’t say anything.I got up, walked toward the bathroom. My body was already heavy with the weight of where this conversation was going, and I didn’t want to go there. Not tonight. Not now.“You’re just going to walk off?” she asked from the bed, voice tight.I stopped. Turned slightly. My jaw ticked. God, not now.“I’m not walking off,” I said, sharper than I meant to. “I’m just… done.”“Done with what?” she shot back.“Done with this. With always feeling like I’m not enough for you.”She sat up, covers falling around her waist. “I never said that.”“You don’t have to.”I ran a hand down my face. I didn’t want this argument. I hated this version of us. The one where I felt like I was constantly trying to read her mind, and failing.“You can go if you want,” I said, flat.Her mouth o

054

JESSICA “You’re not even pretending to work today,” Lucas said, leaning over my cubicle with a grin like he’d just caught me red-handed drinking office coffee before 8 a.m.I sighed. “I’m trying. It’s just… one of those days.”“Where the only thing you’re good at is looking distracted?”I forced a laugh. “Hormones,” I blurted, instantly regretting it. “Just—hormones.”He raised an eyebrow. “Hormones and Slack open on social media?”“Shut up,” I muttered, but I smiled, the tiniest bit.Lucas took a sip from his ridiculous neon water bottle. “Don’t forget we’ve got the investor prep at three.”“I won’t.”“I mean it, Jess. I need your A-game. No hormone excuses.”“I said I won’t,” I repeated, softer now.He gave me a mock salute and disappeared down the hall, his loafers squeaking like bad background music.I sat at my desk, fingers hovering over an unfinished report, but my head was miles away.I was replaying the message Liam sent that morning, over and over, like a broken record. It

HIII THERE❤️

Hi everyone, I want to sincerely apologize for my inconsistency lately. There’s been a lot of family drama and unexpected life stuff happening behind the scenes, and it pulled me away more than I intended. But I’m fully back now—and the good news is, we have probably less than 20 chapters to go! I also want to thank you for your patience. If you’ve noticed a shift or dip in the writing at certain points, it’s likely because I wasn’t in the best headspace while working on those parts. This story means a lot to me, and I appreciate every single one of you who’s stuck with it—and with me. Your support has meant more than you know. Thank you for being here. With love, O.J💕

055

LIAMFuck. Fuck. Fuck, what the fuck have I done?I burst out of the restaurant like it was on fire, breath heaving, heart in pieces. My shoes slapped the pavement, and I didn’t even care that I looked like a lunatic sprinting out of a high-end place like that. My eyes darted, desperate, searching."Jessica! Jessica!"She didn’t turn. Didn’t flinch. Just kept walking like she didn’t know me. Like I wasn’t behind her yelling her name like it was the last word I’d ever say.Her heels clicked steadily against the sidewalk, so calm it made my panic feel stupid. And then she reached Lucas’s car. The fucking car.She opened the passenger door, got in without a word. Slammed it shut. That sound hit harder than anything she could’ve said.Lucas looked at me through the windshield, no expression on his face. Just started the engine, put the car in gear, and drove off with her.Gone. Just like that.My chest was burning. My throat was dry. I didn’t even know what the hell I was supposed to do.

056

JESSICAI sat beside Lucas in the car, my cheek pressed against the window, the glass cold against my skin. The city outside was a blur—streaks of gold and red light sliding past like a dream I couldn’t wake up from. I wasn’t crying loudly. I wasn’t sobbing or gasping for air. I was just leaking. Quietly. Like my body had finally decided that tears didn’t need my permission anymore.Lucas didn’t say anything at first. Just drove. His hand was firm on the wheel, his knuckles pale, his eyes locked on the road—but I could feel him glancing at me every few seconds. That careful kind of glance, like he was afraid looking too long would make me break. Or maybe make him say the wrong thing.After a few minutes, he finally spoke—soft, slow, like he didn’t want to spook me.“Are you okay?”My lips parted, but I didn’t look at him. I didn’t even blink. I just whispered, “Just keep driving.”That was all I had in me. I didn’t know where I wanted to go, I just knew I didn’t want to stop. Stil

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