A wave of sadness hit me, my nose tingling like I was about to cry. “Seriously, Hayden? I didn’t
think you’d be this petty. You won’t even hear me out?”
“I’m not ignoring you,” he shot back. “I called you, but you didn’t pick up.”
I could totally picture him losing it, scrolling through security footage, finding out I’d left with Jace.
Jace had already told me Hayden was looking for me. I grabbed Hayden’s hand. “I wasn’t ignoring
you on purpose. I was in the ICU.”
“I know,” he said, a small smile tugging at his lips. “That’s why I’m not mad. And as for why you
couldn’t reach me, you’ll see soon.”
His eyes flicked to the apartment building. “I haven’t slept or even had water since you leftst
night. I’m exhausted and thirsty.”
His words made my heart ache. I walked ahead, scolding him. “You knew I had to leave for
something serious. Why didn’t you rest? And what’s this about not drinking water?”
He didn’t answer, so I dropped it and hurried us inside,
As soon as we got through the door, Hayden set his suitcase and a bag of fruit down, then suddenly
had me pinned against the shoe cab, his eyes locked on mine.
The way he was looking at me? My breath hitched. I swallowed. “I’ll get you some water.”
“I was jealous,” he admitted, freezing me in ce.
I thought we’d cleared this up already. He’d sounded so understanding outside. Guess not.
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“I didn’t have a choice, I-”
a
Before I could finish, he shut me up with a kiss, pulling me in, his lips pressing hard against mine.
He wasn’t kidding when he said he was thirsty–his lips were dry, rough, and yet somehow, it only
made my pulse race harder.
“I get it,” he whispered against my lips when he finally pulled away, breathless. “But I was still
jealous.” That hit me right in the chest. I knew that feeling all too well.
When Jace hurt me, he always had his reasons. I understood them, but it didn’t make it hurt any
less. “It won’t happen again,” I whispered, wrapping my arms around his neck, trying to calm him
down. He nuzzled my nose in that soft, sweet way that made me smile. “So, where’s the water? I
really am thirsty.”
I led him to the living room and handed him a ss of water. “Here. I’ll wash the fruit.”
But instead, he grabbed my hand, pulling out his phone and mine–and handed them to me. “Hmm?”
I asked, confused.
“The exnation for why you couldn’t reach me,” he said, motioning for me to unlock his phone.
“Did your phone break?” I teased, unlocking it. A video popped up.
I nced between the screen and Hayden.
“I went to watch your friend’spetition,” he exined. “This is the full video. He crushed it–got
first ce.”
My throat tightened, and tears pricked at my eyes as I watched the footage.
He got me.
He knew how much I wanted to be there, and he knew I’d regret missing it. So, he went for me, sure
I didn’t miss out. And to avoid distractions, he put his phone on Do Not Disturb.
That’s why I couldn’t reach him.
“Hayden,” I whispered, dropping the phone and wrapping my arms around him.
making
He understood the hug. He rubbed his chin against the top of my head. “Were you overthinking
everything?
“Yeah,” I admitted, sniffling
“Kiki,” he said softly, his voice warm. “No matter what happens, I’m not leaving you behind.”
“Yeah, I echoed, pressing a kiss to the side of his neck, leaving a yful mark as a little thank–you.
Hayden hadn’t eaten, but aside from breakfast with Yuna, neither had I.
The kitchen was totally empty since I had just moved in. Takeout seemed like the obvious choice,
but Hayden vetoed that idea, saying the first meal in a new ce should always be homemade.
So, we hit up the grocery store to grab some veggies and seasonings. But as we were about to
check out, I spotted someone unexpected–Tanya.
It wasn’t weird for her to be grocery shopping, but seeing her here, in ourplex? That was
definitely a
twist.
And even weirder–after buying her stuff, she didn’t leave. Instead, she turned back and walked
deeper into theplex.