Chapter 286: Love-Struck
SYLAS
I had no business feeling this restless.
Ash and I were supposed to be killing time... doing what nepotism babies do best: spending stupid money on things we didn’t need and acting like we didn’t feel the weight of real-world grief.
Tonight’s distraction? Some rooftop members-only bar with a "curated vibe" and "silent disco" headphones. She was vibing. I was... not.
I twirled the last melting cube in my glass, staring through the dark tint of my sunglasses... yeah, even at night... barely listening to the overpriced synth mix buzzing in my ears. I hadn’t touched the drink in twenty minutes. My fingers just clung to the cold.
Because I was thinking about her.
Aria.
I told myself I was giving her space. That staying away was the decent thing to do. She needed time. She needed quiet. She needed... not me.
But fuck if that wasn’t driving me up the wall. I hadn’t seen her in over two days... two days... and that silence, that distance, was getting under my skin.
And yeah, my face still looked like it got intimate with a steel bat, courtesy of Kael fucking Roman, but whatever. Worth it. I baited him on purpose.
What? He fell for it. Not my fault.
"Why do you look like you’re thinking?" Ash suddenly cut in, tone as dry as the martini in her hand. "I thought your brain didn’t do that."
I didn’t answer. She knew.
She gave me a look, eyebrows lifting. "It’s about Aria, isn’t it?"
I arched a brow back at her. "Who else would it be?"
She clicked her tongue and took a slow sip. "I’m just shocked you’re capable of liking a girl witho seeut treating it like a PR stunt."
"Wow," I said. "You should work on being nicer to me."
"You should work on being less predictable," she shot back with a smirk.
I rolled my eyes and changed the subject. "She’s still with Sarah, right?"
Ash’s smirk dropped a little. "Yeah."
I waited. The way she said that felt...off.
"You say that like it’s a bad thing," I said.
Ash tilted her head, chewing her lip. "I don’t know. Something about that girl just makes me feel weird."
"Sarah?" I laughed. "You just don’t like women who wear pastels and know how to smile."
"No, dumbass." Her voice flattened. "It’s not that. I just get this gut feeling, and it’s never wrong."
I groaned. "You sound like a horoscope app."
Ash narrowed her eyes. "Keep making jokes, Sylas. One day they’ll stop being funny."
I didn’t answer. Because... maybe she wasn’t entirely wrong. Sarah was sweet. Too sweet. Always had that Stepford smile on.
But Aria trusted her. And that should’ve been enough. Should’ve been.
I rubbed the side of my jaw. The bruises still ached.
Ash watched me with her usual bored curiosity. "So what, you gonna keep pouting into your drink like a love-struck poet? Or are you gonna do something?"
I looked at my phone. My fingers were already hovering over her contact before I could even think.
"I’m calling her," I muttered. "I need to see her."
Ash leaned back, shaking her head. "Of course you do."
"Say it."
"What?"
"I told you so."
She smirked. "Oh baby, I live for being right."
The wind was biting against my cheeks as I took the long road toward Sarah’s apartment. I didn’t care.
There was something about riding my bike at night that made me feel weightless... like the world couldn’t touch me for a while. Just engine sound, cold air, and the lie that if I kept going fast enough, maybe I could outrun the ache in my chest.
But of course, I slowed down when I got to her street.
I pulled up across from the building, the tires crunching softly over gravel. It was the same apartment I dropped her off at the night we met... back when she was just some stubborn girl caught in a storm, and I thought I could charm my way into her space like I always did.
I didn’t expect to fall for her. Not really. Not like this.
Not in the kind of way that made every second without her feel like something was missing from the air I breathed.
I killed the engine and checked my phone.
No missed calls.
No texts.
I called again.
Voicemail.
"Aria. It’s me," I said, voice low. "I, uh... I don’t really have a reason for calling except... I wanted to hear your voice. I wanted to see you. Just for a second. I’m outside. Not to barge in or anything... just..."
I exhaled and leaned back on the seat, staring up at the building like it could give me answers.
"...I just miss you, that’s all."
I hung up and shoved the phone into my jacket pocket, staring blankly ahead.
I should go.
She didn’t want to see anyone.
This was probably selfish of me.
I was just about to turn the key in the ignition...
Bzzzt.
My phone vibrated.
I snatched it out fast enough to drop it. I cursed, picked it up again. Her name was glowing on the screen.
Aria was calling.
My throat dried up.
I hesitated for half a second... just half... before I hit accept and pressed it to my ear.
"...Aria?"
There was a pause. A quiet one.
Then finally, her voice, soft, hesitant, barely there.
"Sylas?"
My heart cracked and bloomed at the same time.
"Yeah, sad girl."
A silence stretched on the other end of the call. I didn’t say anything, didn’t breathe too loud, like I might scare her off if I did.
And then, finally...
"...Are you... are you actually outside?"
Her voice was faint, a little sleep-drenched or just tired in that way people are when grief wears them thin. I smiled before I could stop myself, even though my chest ached hearing how hollow she sounded.
"Yeah," I replied. "Didn’t mean to freak you out or anything. I was just...uh in the neighborhood."
Which was a bold-faced lie. I was halfway across the city and made it here in under twenty-five minutes like a damn criminal on a mission.
"You were in the neighborhood?"
She sounded almost amused, almost.
"Sorta," I said, forcing a chuckle, "Figured maybe I’d do a late-night stakeout. Park under your window, hold up a boombox like in those old movies. Romantic, right?"
She exhaled through her nose. That almost-laugh again. "That’s creepy. Don’t do that."
"I won’t," I said quickly. "Unless you’re into it, in which case I’ll get the boombox now."
Another pause. But it wasn’t cold. It was one of those quiets that held heat, like neither of us knew what to say next without breaking something.
"...Sylas."
"Yeah?"
"Why are you here?"
I closed my eyes and rested my head against the handlebar.
God, why was I here?
Because I missed her.
Because I hadn’t slept properly.
Because I hated knowing she was hurting and I wasn’t even in the fucking frame.
"Because I just wanted to see your face," I answered honestly. "Even if it’s just for a minute. I’ll keep my helmet on and everything if you want. Won’t say a word. Just... come down. Please."
She went quiet again.
I sat up, nervous fingers tapping against the clutch lever.
Then, finally...
"Give me five minutes."
I blinked. "Wait... seriously?"
"Mhm. Don’t make me change my mind."
"You got it," I breathed, trying way too hard to sound casual. "I’ll be right here. Not moving an inch."
She hung up.
And I sat there with a dumb grin stretching across my face, my pulse finally steadying after what felt like days. I ran a hand through my hair and muttered to myself...
"Get it together, man. You’re not a dog."
But I already knew I’d be wagging my damn tail the second I saw her.