Noah's POV
We reached the house after that long, quiet walk from the creek. The sky was starting to turn soft and dim, and the air felt cooler on my skin.
I pushed the bike slowly, walking a bit behind them. I wanted to say something to Olivia, to ask if we could talk, even for a short while. There was so much sitting in my chest that I needed to let out.
But when I turned back, I saw Adrian's hand close around her wrist.
He just gently pulled her toward the car parked near the shed.
I let out a small sigh.
I knew it.
I know what jealousy looks like. I've lived in that feeling for days now.
The way Adrian stood on the bridge earlier, watching us… the way his eyes followed us like he was waiting to see if we'd do more than just hug.
I knew from the moment I first saw his face there that something in him had shifted.
I lowered my eyes and pushed the bike to the patio. I parked it gently against the wall, then brushed some dust from my hands.
From the corner of my eye, I saw them getting into the car together. The doors closed with a soft, heavy sound.
I turned away, opened the front door, and went inside alone, leaving the cool evening and whatever conversation they were about to have behind me.
Olivia's POV
As soon as we reached the front of the house, Adrian stopped walking. His hand tightened a little on my wrist.
I turned to look at him. His face was serious—no trace of the playful smile he usually wore.
"Adrian?" I asked gently. "What's wrong?"
He didn't answer. Instead, he pulled me with him toward his car parked beside the shed. His grip wasn't painful, but it was firm.
I was confused, but I didn't ask more questions. Something in the air told me this was not the moment to talk lightly.
He let go of my wrist, walked around to the passenger side, and opened the door.
"Get in," he said quietly.
I hesitated for half a second, then climbed into the seat.
He closed my door, walked around to the driver's side, and got in. The inside of the car smelled faintly of dust and his cologne.
Then there was silence.
He rested his hands on the steering wheel, staring straight ahead. The engine was off. The only sounds were the faint rustle of trees and the distant noise of a car passing somewhere far away.
I sat there, my hands on my lap, looking at him, then looking away, then looking back again.
The mood inside the car was heavy, pressed down, like the air itself was waiting.
I decided not to speak first. I waited.
A few long minutes passed. Then he let out a deep sigh. It wasn't just tired—it sounded like something inside him was breaking a little.
Without turning his head, still staring out the front window, he spoke. His voice was low and heavy.
"I think Noah likes you."
I froze.
My fingers started to move without me thinking, picking at my nails, twisting them together.
He didn't say anything else right away. The words hung between us, sharp and clear.
Then he spoke again.
"Your silence," he said slowly, "screams that you knew he had feelings for you all along."
I closed my eyes for a moment and let out a shaky breath. There was no point lying now.
"Yes," I said quietly. "I knew."
His hands tightened on the steering wheel.
"Since when?" he asked. His tone was calm, but there was a thin crack under it.
I looked down at my hands, then forced myself to answer.
"He told me the first day he arrived in Wrenford," I said.
Adrian finally turned his head a little, watching me from the side.
"What did he say?" he asked.
I swallowed.
"He said he's liked me since university days," I replied. "He… he told me he had feelings back then. And that he regretted introducing me to you."
Adrian's head snapped fully toward me, quick as lightning.
"He what?" he said, a short, disbelieving scoff leaving his mouth. "He regretted introducing you to me?"
I nodded weakly.
"He said it in a joking way at first," I added quickly, "but I could tell he meant it."
Adrian let out another bitter, quiet laugh and leaned back in his seat.
"I was quiet," he said, his jaw tight. "Not blind, you know."
I looked at him, my chest tight.
He stared at the windshield again.
"I saw the signs," he said. "The looks, the small moments. The way he watches you. The way you… sometimes look back."
I felt my whole body start to shake, but I tried to hide it by gripping my knees tighter.
"I told myself it was just my crazy mind," he went on. "That I was being paranoid. That I was imagining things. So I kept quiet."
He let out a humorless breath.
"But seeing you two at the creek, seeing how close you were…" he added. "It didn't feel like my imagination anymore."
My throat burned.
Then his next question came, blunt and sharp.
"How far did you and Noah go?"
My heart dropped.
I could have lied. I could have softened it. But lies would only make this worse.
So I forced myself to tell the truth.
"We… kissed once," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "He kissed me. And I didn't stop him."
For a second, the car felt like it had no air.
Adrian's breath started coming faster and heavier. His shoulders tensed. His hands moved from the steering wheel to his pants, then back again, fidgeting, restless. His knee bounced slightly.
He didn't look at me right away. His jaw was clenched so tight I thought it might hurt.
"Adrian," I said softly, my voice shaking. "I'm sorry. I should've told you. I—"
I reached out, trying to take his hand.
He pulled it away from me before I could touch him.
The rejection stung more than I expected.
He dragged a hand down his face and let out another deep, rough sigh.
"I need to calm down," he said, his voice raw. "I need… I need air."
Then he opened the door and stepped out of the car.
"Adrian, wait," I called, but my voice sounded small.
He didn't look back.
All I could do was sit there and watch through the windshield as his figure walked slowly away from the car. He didn't stop at the house. He just kept walking down the street, his shoulders slightly hunched, his steps heavy.
The moment he turned the corner and vanished from view, something inside me snapped.
The tears rushed up before I could stop them.
My body started shaking. I pulled my knees up onto the seat, wrapped my arms around them, and pressed my forehead against them.
Tears fell fast, hot and endless.
I cried for Adrian's hurt, for Noah's feelings, for my own confusion, for the mess I had let grow between us.
The small, quiet car became a tiny world filled only with the sound of my sobs and the storm I had tried so hard to ignore.