The next day, practice session had been torture for all the guys. Ren had been relentlessly barking instructions the entire sessions, going harder than ever.
Ren hadn't expected to be affected as much as he did. His grip on his water bottle tightened until the plastic crumpled, his jaw locked so hard his teeth ached. The guys noticed his mood but one look at his stormy face kept them quiet.
By Saturday morning, the restless energy had twisted into something else. He had laid awake all night, unable to sleep until finally he couldn't sit on it anymore. Before he could think twice, he was standing outside Noelle's apartment, fist knocking harder than he intended.
When she opened the door, surprise flickered across her face. "Ren? What are you—"
He stepped inside before she could finish, his tall frame crowding her back against the door as it clicked shut. His voice was low, rougher than usual. "You were really going to go with him?"
Noelle blinked, stunned. "What?"
"Daniel." His hand braced against the door above her head, caging her in. "You didn't say no."
Her pulse skittered. She hadn't seen him like this before: sharp, demanding, possessive in a way that made her both nervous and unsteady. "Ren, it's not what you think—"
"It's not about what I think." His eyes darkened, locking on hers. "I care what you think. Because if you think for even a second that I'll stand by while some guy brags about taking you out…" His free hand caught hers, pressing it firmly against his chest where his heart thundered beneath. "…you're wrong."
Her breath caught. "Ren…"
Noelle swallowed hard, her back still pressed to the door, her hand trapped against the steady drum of his heartbeat. "You can't just barge in here and—"
"And what?" His voice was taut, close enough that his breath brushed her cheek. "Let Daniel think he's got a chance with you?"
Her eyes flashed. "You don't get to decide who I talk to, Ren! You've been… distant. You don't message me. You don't even hold my hand in school. What am I supposed to think?"
His jaw tightened but there was a flicker of hurt beneath the anger. "That you're mine," he shot back, the words blunt, unpolished. "Even if I've been an idiot about showing it."
Her chest squeezed, torn between wanting to believe him and the sting of being left to wonder. "Then why does it feel like I'm the only one trying?"
That cracked something open in him. He dropped his head closer, forehead almost touching hers, his voice lower now, almost pleading. "Noelle… I want you. Only you. I've never wanted anyone else. I tried. I asked you out but you rejected me flat out. And then I hear Daniel bringing you out for movies. What was I supposed to think?" His hand slid from the door to her waist, gripping gently but firmly anchoring her there.
Her heart raced. The heat between them swelled, fuelled by frustration, longing, the ache of unspoken things. "Maybe you should think of checking with me instead of acting crazy," she whispered, her voice trembling with more than just anger.
His lips curved in a half-smile, breathless. "But I'm crazy for you."
And then he kissed her, harder, fiercer than before, all his jealousy and need pouring into it. She pushed against his chest at first, not in rejection but in resistance, a half-hearted attempt at holding onto her pride. But when he deepened the kiss, her resolve melted, fingers curling into his shirt, pulling him closer.
Ren groaned softly, lifting her just as he had before, her legs instinctively wrapping around his waist as he carried her through the dim apartment. Their lips never broke, mouths desperate, clashing and clinging.
By the time they reached her bedroom, both were breathless, their earlier argument unravelling into touches and whispers, heat rolling over them in waves. He pressed his forehead to hers, murmuring hoarsely, "I can't stand the thought of anyone else touching you. Tell me you're mine, Noelle."
"No. That's not how it works, Ren."
He lowered them gently but never let her go as his hands remained firm at her waist, anchoring her close, like letting even an inch of distance slip between them was unthinkable.
Ren didn't set her down immediately. He pressed her closer instead, her legs locked firmly around his waist, her body moulded against his as though she'd always belonged there. The air between them was already heavy, charged, every breath mingling, every heartbeat quickening.
"Ren …" she whispered, breathless, every inch of her trembling.
"Hmmm?" he murmured against her throat, the word vibrating against her skin. His hands held her tighter, grounding her even as he unravelled her with every kiss, every bite, every breath shared in that narrow space between them.
It wasn't soft, not at first. It was fierce, insistent, as if he'd been starving for this and could no longer hold back. His lips crushed against hers, his tongue slipping past to deepen the kiss, coaxing and demanding at once. Noelle let out a muffled sound — part protest, part surrender — and Ren swallowed it whole, pulling her even tighter.
Noelle's heart thundered. The familiar steadiness she always felt with Ren was still there but layered with something hotter now, heavier.
He kept her pressed against him, her legs snug around his waist, his breath warm against her cheek. Noelle could feel the thrum of his heartbeat where their bodies touched, steady but quickening, like her own.
Her protest had barely faded when Ren tilted his head, capturing her mouth with a force that left no room for doubt. It was hungry, raw, threaded through with everything he'd been holding back.
Noelle gasped into him, her hands tightening on his shoulders as his lips moved over hers, deep and unrelenting. He angled her back slightly, and when she parted for him, his tongue brushed against hers in a rhythm that made her pulse skip and stutter.
Then, with a wicked patience, Ren caught her lower lip between his teeth, tugging gently before letting it go. Noelle shivered, a soft sound escaping her throat, half shock, half need.
His mouth trailed lower, down the line of her jaw, lingering at the sensitive place just below her ear before moving to her neck. His lips pressed there, slow and deliberate, then opened to draw her skin into a deeper kiss that sent heat spiralling through her entire body.
Noelle's head tipped back helplessly, eyes fluttering shut as he tasted her with a kind of hunger disguised as fire.
When she finally broke away for air, her forehead fell against his. Her breath came fast, uneven, and Ren smiled, a slow, wicked curve of his mouth that promised more.
Her breath hitched when Ren's grip on her hands tightened, pinning them just enough to remind her of his strength. The controlled pressure sent a shiver through her, every nerve on fire. He hovered just above her lips, his breath hot against her skin.
"You drive me insane," he muttered, his voice low, ragged with jealousy and want. "The thought of you with him…" He cut himself off with a harsh kiss, their teeth nearly clashing, lips bruising.
Noelle gasped against his mouth, half from the force of it, half from the confession in his tone. "Then don't… let me think of anyone else," she whispered back, defiant, trembling.
That undid him. His mouth claimed hers again, rough at first, then softer, hungrier. His free hand slid beneath her, pulling her flush against him, their bodies aligned so close there was no space left between them. She arched instinctively, her legs tightening around his waist, anchoring him to her.
Ren groaned into her mouth at the motion, breaking the kiss only to trail hot, desperate kisses along her jaw, down the curve of her throat. Each brush of his lips sent waves of heat through her, her nails digging lightly into his shoulders where she had finally freed her hands.
"Say it," he demanded against her skin, his voice hoarse. "Tell me you're mine."