All Chapters of A Love Mess: Who loves who?: Chapter 51 - Chapter 60

Both of them turned at once. Cade stood in the doorway, keys still in hand, expression shifting rapidly from confusion to alarm as he took in the scene—Arlen's eyes blotchy and furious, Justin pale and cornered near the couch, a notebook lying open on the table between them. And the words he had just heard."Cade—" Justin started, but Arlen cut him off, something brittle and reckless taking over now that there was nothing left to protect."You should probably know," Arlen said, voice shaking but strangely clear, "that Justin's been in love with you this entire time. Since before we even started dating. He only got with me because he thought you didn't want him back, and every single terrible thing that's happened over the past few weeks—my dad finding out, the fight with you and Max, even me ending up in the hospital—all of it was him, trying to seduce you into falling for him." Arlen finished, his chest rising and falling in anger.Cade knew more than half of what Arlen had said. But

It's been three days and the house had settled into a strange, brittle rhythm in the days after the confrontation. Justin finally went back to his apartment that was never infested.And in those three days, Arlen hasn't been to work. Cade had already told Nick and Brennon about Justin's manipulation and schemes and as expected, they were shocked. Nick had quickly left saying he needed to talk to Arlen.Arlen and Cade were left alone in a space that had never once felt comfortable and now worse like walking across thin ice, waiting for the crack. It started small. Arlen came downstairs one morning to find Cade drinking coffee, "I bet the rules look stupid now that everything is out."Cade blinked, caught off guard by the sharpness of it. "What?""Nothing." Arlen went to the kitchen to grab water and as he passed Cade to head back to his room, he said, "Justin would've sat with you while you glare at me."Cade decided to let it go. He told himself, that this wasn't really about the rule

The apartment smelled faintly of dust when Arlen finally unlocked the door, the accumulated stillness of a place left empty for weeks pressing against him the moment he stepped inside. He set his bags down just past the doorway and stood there for a long moment, taking it in. The same couch, the same kitchen table, the same soft gray curtains he'd hung himself two years ago, all of it exactly as he'd left it and somehow entirely unfamiliar now. He'd told himself the drive over that this was a good idea. Necessary, even. Nick's voice still echoed faintly in his head "give yourself somewhere to actually feel all of this without an audience." And some part of him had clung to that reasoning the whole way here, instead of turning the car around and going back to the safety of Cade's steady, patient presence. But standing here now, alone in a space that had once felt like the beginning of something, all that careful reasoning started to crumble. He moved through the apartment slowly, un

The knock came just after noon, three sharp raps that didn't sound like anyone Arlen was expecting, because nobody he was expecting would knock like that—like they had every right to be there and weren't going to apologize for it. Arlen almost didn't answer. He'd gotten good at not answering things these past days. But something about the rhythm of it nagged at him, familiar in a way he couldn't place until he was already halfway to the door.He opened it and there was Max, one hand still raised like he might knock again, the other holding a paper bag that smelled like something greasy and good."You," Arlen said, and it came out in a breath, something between a laugh and a question."Me," Max agreed, and pushed past him into the apartment without waiting to be invited, the way he'd always done, since they were still in school. "Are you gonna let me in or just stand there looking shocked?""I'm letting you in. You're already in.""Observant." Max set the bag down on the counter and tu

Cade walked into his house, keys giggling as he dropped his briefcase on the couch before loosening his tie and going into the kitchen to get water. Once done, he went back to the living room, and made a small noise of shock when he saw Arlen. "When did you get here?" He asked, staring at him, like he was seeing someone else. A huge part of it being the change of hairstyle.Arlen stood in the middle of the room, looking like a man who'd rehearsed his speech and forgot them the moment he arrived. "Not quite long. I heard your footsteps and that's why I came downstairs."Cade slowly nodded, unsure of where this was going."I need to say some things," Arlen said finally. "And I need you to just let me get through them, because if you stop me I don't think I'll start again.""Okay." Cade set his keys down on the side table, and waited, giving Arlen all his attention.Arlen took a breath that shook a little on the way in. "I owe you an apology. A real one." He looked at the floor, then ma