All Chapters of Boys Like Him: Chapter 61 - Chapter 70

Soft music drifted through the car speakers to stop the silence from feeling empty.The city lights blurred past my window in streaks of gold and white while the low hum of the engine settled into the background."We should be there in about an hour," Malik said eventually, his fingers tapping lightly against the steering wheel. "Maybe less if traffic behaves for once in its miserable life.""Oh."Brilliant response.I mentally slapped myself."Oh?"His mouth twitched."That's all I get?"I laughed softly."No, I mean... okay.""Okay?"I groaned."Please stop repeating everything I say.""It's entertaining."I rolled my eyes and turned back toward the window.A few moments passed before Malik spoke again."I took your music class seriously, by the way."My brow furrowed."My what?""The one where you aggressively educated me on what constitutes good music."I gasped."Aggressively?""You called my playlist an attack on human ears.""I stand by that statement."His laugh filled the car

"Don't." That was all he said.Which, naturally, made it a thousand times worse.I started laughing, the hardest I'd laughed all week.Maybe all month."YOU TALK ABOUT ME?""No.""THEY JUST SAID YOU DO.""They exaggerate."The sisters collectively screamed."HE'S LYING!"Several nearby guests turned to stare.Neither Emma nor Olivia cared. Charlotte was laughing so hard that tears had formed in her eyes. Even Grace had abandoned her calm demeanor and was openly giggling now.I doubled over.Malik pointed accusingly at his sisters."You four are the worst people I know.""We love you too," Emma replied immediately."I regret coming.""No you don't.""No I don't."I looked up just in time to catch the fondness that flashed across his face before he could hide it.And somehow that realization made me feel even more comfortable.Because for the first time since arriving, the venue didn't feel intimidating anymore.Not when I was standing in a circle laughing with Malik and his ridiculous

The introductions continued throughout the evening.His coach, trainers, former teammates, current teammates, people from the Olympic committee, sponsors, and friends.Every single one of them seemed genuinely happy to see him.And surprisingly, genuinely kind.Nothing like Lloyd's circle full of arrogance, weird hierarchy, and constant need to prove who was more important."This is the girl you've been hiding from us?" one of his teammates asked.Malik groaned."Oh God."Another one immediately pointed."He's definitely been talking about her.""Everyone keeps saying that.""Because it's true.""Can nobody help me tonight?"The entire group burst into laughter.I joined them.Because watching Malik get roasted by literally everyone he knew was rapidly becoming one of my favorite hobbies.At some point, shots appeared.I honestly had no idea where they came from. One minute we were talking, the next there was a tray, then glasses and cheering, and somehow I was holding alcohol."To Ma

"LLOYD!"The scream ripped from my throat and echoed through the parking lot.Lloyd froze, and the crutch stopped inches from Malik's face.So close, far too close.For a moment, the three of us were suspended in a terrifying silence.Then Lloyd turned his head toward me. What I saw in his eyes made my stomach drop. And for the first time since I met him, I was genuinely afraid of him."Please," I whispered, my voice barely audible. "Don't hurt him."The words seemed to slice through whatever madness had consumed Lloyd.For one horrifying second, nobody moved.The parking lot had gone eerily quiet around us. The distant sounds of traffic, the music bleeding from the venue, the chatter of guests arriving and leaving, all of it seemed to fade beneath the thunder of my heartbeat.Then I was moving.I shoved past Lloyd without sparing him another glance and dropped beside Malik."Malik!"My hands immediately found him, grabbing at his shoulders, his arms, checking frantically for injuries

"Lloyd, what are you doing?"My voice barely sounded like my own. It trembled under the weight of the terror choking me. Lloyd laughed bitterly."Ridding the world of myself."My stomach plummeted. No. The gun remained pressed against his temple, looking terrifyingly cold and dark against his flushed skin. His finger stayed hooked around the trigger. Rigid, and ready. Far too ready."Lloyd," I whispered, inhaling a ragged, desperate breath to steady my frayed nerves. "Put the gun down.""Why?" His voice rose, shattering completely. "Why would I do that?" He didn't look at me. Tears streamed freely down his face, catching the moonlight. "There's no point anymore.""That's not true.""It is." His desperate laugh hitched into something dangerously close to a sob. "My entire existence became meaningless the second I lost you.""Hey." Malik's voice cut through the dark. He was calm, steady, and calculated, methodically trying to keep Lloyd talking. "Man, just chill out."Lloyd's head sna