Chapter 18: Words That Hover
Saturday night.
Rain lashed softly against the windows, and the apartment felt smaller, warmer, charged with tension.
I was sitting on the couch, trying to read, but my mind was a storm of thoughts about Alex.
He came in quietly, holding a blanket.
"Cold?" he asked softly, draping it over my shoulders.
I froze, feeling the warmth of him brushing against me.
"I… thanks," I whispered, heart racing.
He didn't move away. Instead, he sat beside me, close enough that our shoulders pressed together.
The contact was subtle, but it made my chest ache.
"I… saw a message today," I muttered, voice low.
"I… thought you were with someone else."
Alex's eyebrows furrowed slightly.
"What? No… it was nothing. Just a misunderstanding," he said quickly.
"But… why didn't you ask me first?"
I swallowed, embarrassed.
"I… I don't know. I just… panicked," I admitted.
He sighed softly, his shoulder brushing mine again.
"It's okay," he murmured, voice gentle but intense.
"Sometimes… we feel things before we understand them."
My heart skipped.
I wanted to speak, to clarify, to say something… but words failed me.
He leaned just slightly closer, so our heads were nearly touching.
"Ethan…" he whispered.
"I like being close to you. More than I thought I would."
I felt my pulse hammer.
The words hung in the air, unspoken, yet loud enough to fill the room.
I wanted to deny it, to pull away…
But I couldn't.
Instead, I let my shoulder rest against his.
Just slightly. Just enough.
And for a moment, everything else faded—the rain, the city, the apartment.
It was just us.
Close. Too close.
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