I'm A Stick Beside Him Novels & Stories

I watched him go for a moment, his figure steady despite the walking stick, before the space beside me shifted, reminding me that I wasn’t standing there alone. And just like that, it was only Brandon and me left in the lobby.

And then I realized someone was standing beside me. I didn't look at first. I felt him like you feel another presence in a room, the specific weight and warmth of another person close to you, the change in the air that tells you you are no longer alone. He was tall. I could tell that from the shadow he cast in the golden, sourceless light. And he was still in that way that powerful things are still – not the stillness of someone waiting for permission, but the stillness of someone who has never needed it. I turned.

“I want to stand beside you.” Something shifted in his expression. Because that was the one thing Fort struggled with. Letting someone stand beside him. Not behind him. Not depending on him. Beside him. “You’re sure?” I smiled softly. “Yes.” “Even when it’s difficult?” “Yes.” “Even when things get complicated?” “Yes.” I held his gaze. “Especially then.” FORT’S POV There were moments when life changed without warning. Not because something dramatic happened. Because someone said something that reached a place you had kept hidden.

That strange strength that had no reason to be mine. My grip on the scroll tightened. “You’re wrong,” I said, but my voice cracked, unsure. “I’m not special.” He stepped forward, the sound of his stick against stone echoing like a heartbeat. “You are,” he said, his voice low but certain. “And I’ll prove it.”

Not even close. “This is…” I started, then realised I didn’t even know his name. Right. Great. A faint, almost imperceptible smile touched his lips. The guy beside me shifted, clearly picking up on something he didn’t understand. “I think I’ll grab a drink,” he said, backing away. “I’ll see you around.” And just like that, I was alone with him. Again. Different place. Same problem. “You shouldn’t be here,” I said, my voice lower now. “This isn’t your scene.”

“We can face them. If you’ll stand beside me.” I wasn’t sure what to say. My heart was thundering in my chest, and my throat felt tight. But I nodded. Not because I wasn’t afraid. But because deep down... I wanted to stand beside him. Even if everything went up in flames.

Walking toward the place where twenty years of patience was about to meet something it had never accounted for. Caden fell into step beside me. Not behind. Not in front, claiming the space the way he once would have. Beside. It was, I thought, exactly where he needed to learn how to be.

I said quietly. “I’m not,” he said, voice low. “I’ll stay. But only if you’re ready to work with it, not against it.” I let out a long breath, not quite a laugh, not quite a sigh. “Then I guess we’re stuck together.” “Yes,” he said, almost fondly. “Stuck. For now.”

I want you to stand beside me, little dove. “You’ll get use to this.”

I shook my head. "That's the thing, you said you were all good beside me, but what if I am not there?" I frowned on hearing him say that. "I want you to be strong on your own, not because I'm there," he said. "Go, I will catch you if you fall."