When She Said No Novels & Stories

“Not yours.” I didn’t interrupt. Because she was right. “If something goes wrong,” she continued, “I’m the one who has to live with it.” A pause. “Or not.” That hit harder than anything else. Because she said it so simply. Like she had already accepted the possibility. “No,” I said again. But this time— It wasn’t defiance. It was desperation. She watched me carefully. “You can’t just say ‘no’ and make it disappear.” “I know.” “Then stop pretending you can fix this.”

“You. Said. Yes.” She throws her hands up in frustration, lettin' go of my chin. “I quit! There’s no point in arguing with you. I can’t make you listen to anything, so I quit!” Her words are filled with exasperation, but the second her hand drops, I’m kissin' 'er again.

~Uthman~ 'No' I stared at her incredulously. No? What does that mean? What does she mean by that? And she wasn't even smiling. What the fuck? 'What do you mean by no?' She shrugged. 'Exactly what no means.' We were standing so close that it was basically impossible for me to move my hand without touching her and No? What's no? 'Why? She shrugged again. 'No particular reason' I said nothing for a while and we just stood there staring when she burst into laughter. She moved back, laughing hard.

“That wasn’t it. Not at all.” She was quiet again, fingers smoothing the edge of the paper. I waited, resisting the urge to fill the silence the way I used to before therapy taught me that kids needed space to arrive at their own feelings. “Can I still say no?” she asked eventually. My chest tightened. “Of course you can,” I said. “You don’t owe anyone anything. This is your choice.” She considered that, lips pursed, then surprised me again. “I’ll go,” she said.

"Be my friend." "No." She said no to every single thing that I said without really thinking about it. So, I got some naughty ideas. "Do you like me?" "No." "Do you want me to go?" "No." We were staring at each other. I smiled when I heard her answer. I caught her. "Really?" I confirmed that even though I know she wasn't really paid attention to my question. "Wait, what did you say?" She was nervous and tried to push me away. I chuckled at her response.

‎“She just… was.” ‎Seb leaned against the bench beside me. ‎“And?” ‎I ran a hand through my hair, exhaling softly. ‎“She offered me money.” ‎“And you refused,” he said dryly. ‎“Yes.” ‎“Still stupid.” ‎I ignored him. ‎“She didn’t like that.” ‎“No one likes being told no.” ‎“It wasn’t that,” I said. “She looked at me like… she didn’t understand it.” ‎Seb snorted.

Her eyes searched mine for my answer. 'Tell her you can't. Tell her you can't' a voice said in my head. I had to learn how to say no. "Alright, I will do it." were the words that left my lips instead. "I knew it. You are such a darling." she kissed me on the cheek and hurried off to her desk, her heels clicking noisily with every step she took. I sighed and palmed my face. On a normal day, this would not be an issue for me at all but today was nothing close to a normal day.

“I came to remind you of what this arrangement is.” “I haven’t forgotten.” “Good.” I took one step closer, watching her eyes. “Strip.” The word cut through the space between us. She didn’t move. I watched the moment the command hit her. Her expression faltered, barely. Her fingers twitched. Then she straightened even more. “No.” The silence that followed hit harder than a slap. My jaw ticked. “What did you say?” She met my gaze. “I said no.” I couldn’t speak.

A time before I let her down. Just when I think she might do as she’s asked, she raises her chin defiantly and looks me square in the eye. “No.” “No?” “I don’t want to get in the truck with you, Cade.” “I don’t remember asking what you wanted.” “Well that makes sense because you never cared about what I wanted.”

Who wouldn't take that deal? "How did you respond?" I asked. My voice came out sharper than I intended, my pulse racing against my collar. "I said no," she said firmly. I blinked, the wind knocked out of me. "No?" She tilted her head, her eyes narrowing as she took in my shocked expression. "Should I have said yes? You look disappointed, Jaydon." Her voice was thick with sudden irritation. "Of course not," I snapped, though a wave of pure, unadulterated relief washed over me. "I’m glad you didn't."