Glass Hearts [BL]

My heart was still racing, but not from fear anymore, but something warmer.

Omg, omg...what should I do?

Should I feel proud, terrified, or embarrassed?

Everyone’s eyes are on me, and I’m frozen. This isn’t how I envisioned coming out to them. I wasn’t ready, didn’t get a chance to prepare. Why didn’t he warn me? Now, I’m caught off guard, with no script to follow.

Why didn’t he tell me? Why didn’t he ask?

But then again...he did it.

Dominichad chosen to stand up here, with me, in front of his brothers. He hadn’t just let the truth out...he’d pulled me into it.

I glanced at him, and he caught my eyes. His grip tightened again.

And just like that, in the middle of all the chaos and fear, he’d given me something I didn’t expect, something steady.

Us.

Dominic cleared his throat. "So... yeah. That’s Ash. My boyfriend. Don’t make it weird."

The boys exchanged looks.

Jasper’s jaw dropped. "Bro. Now? Really? We’re on the edge of death and you’re..." He threw his hands up. "God, Dom."

Ian rubbed his face, muttering, "This is the worst timing I’ve ever witnessed."

Casper’s eyes went cold. He leaned back, unreadable. His stare locked on me like he was running calculations.

Then Ren exhaled. "Timing aside... it’s kinda obvious, isn’t it? Look at them."

The twins exchanged a look.

The silence dragged long enough that my stomach flipped. Finally, Ren muttered, "...welcome, Ash."

And that was enough. The others softened almost instantly.

"Welcome to the family, Ash," Casper said gently.

Ian smiled. "Guess you’re stuck with us now."

Jasper folded his arms, then sighed.

My chest tightened. Family? I had to smile, even though my heart still pounded.

Dom gave a crooked little smile. "I just wish Liam was here. He’d have said something like..." His voice trailed.

Ren tilted his head. "Probably something dramatic, like, ’finally, Dom found his soulmate.’"

"Or," Jasper jumped in smirking, "’took you long enough, dumbass.’"

Everyone laughed. Even Dom, though his eyes softened.

Ian exhaled, leaning back in his chair. "Yeah... we’re really gonna miss him. He was the heart of the group."

Silence pressed in for a moment. Then, they all sighed.

Content originally comes from novel·fire.net

Casper finally broke it. "You know... he’s the one who came up with our name."

"The Glass Circle," Dominic said softly.

I blinked. "Wait...that was Liam’s idea? What even inspired that?"

Casper smirked. "Oh, you’re gonna love this. We were kids, maybe ten..."

"Correction," Jasper cut in. "We were ten. Dom was nine."

Dominic groaned. "Here we go."

Casper kept going. "So, we’re sitting around Liam’s porch, eating those popsicles during summer, right? And Ian drops his on the ground, shattered into pieces. And Liam goes, ’See? That’s us. Fragile, but we’ll always stick together. Like glass circles.’"

Jasper cackled. "He actually wanted to call us the Popsicle Gang at first. Thank God we voted no."

Everyone burst out laughing.

Popsicle gang would’ve been iconic.

"Then we swore we’d always stick together," Dom said quietly, smiling a little.

"Yeah," Ian added. "We were like ten."

"Only Dom was nine," Ren reminded them again.

Dominic groaned, covering his face. "It’s okay, guys. Seriously? You guys really have to remind Ash I’m the baby of the group?" He pointed at Ian. "It’s literally just three months, bro."

The room cracked up again.

I leaned back, watching them laugh.

I really enjoyed their company. They all had their own chaos, their own shine. I’m so glad I met them.

The laughter finally faded, and the silence that followed carried weight. Like we’d all remembered why we were here.

I cleared my throat, pulling my hand gently from Dominic’s....not because I didn’t want to hold it, but because everyone’s eyes were on us, and I needed to stand on my own for this.

"Okay," I said, more nervous than I’ve ever felt. "We’ve spiraled enough. Now we need to think."

They all looked at me. Ren curious, Ian restless, Jasper chewing a nail, Casper unreadable, with that restless tapping foot. Dominic steady at my side

Ren’s voice cut through. "So what do we do?"

My mouth opened. Nothing came out. Shit! I was panicking. Don’t freeze. Don’t freeze, Ash.

"W..we... we can’t run. That’s suicide." My breath caught, then steadied. "The Coil isn’t just some neighborhood gang. They’re organized. Dangerous. And if we’re not careful..." I sighed. "...none of us make it out."

That sobered everyone.

Casper leaned forward, elbows on his knees, eyes locked on me. Quiet, calculating. "So what’s your angle?"

I met his gaze.

Casper...the observer. Doesn’t waste time with fluff. Goes straight to the throat.

"We don’t run. We don’t panic," I said firmly. "We build proof. Evidence that what happened that night wasn’t what they think. If we can show them the truth, maybe... we buy back our lives."

Ren tilted his head, that thoughtful look in his eyes. "Truth as a shield. Poetic... if it doesn’t get us killed first."

Ren....the poet strategist. Speaks in riddles, but he’s weighing the risk already.

Ian dragged a hand down his face. "Great. So we go digging in hell and pray we don’t get burned. Sounds fun." His sarcasm was sharp, but his eyes told another story. Fear. Regret.

Ian...the protector. Pretends he doesn’t care, but the thought of the fear of the people he loves being dragged into this terrifies him.

Then Jasper piped up, of course. "Wait, wait, wait. Let me get this straight."

He pointed dramatically at Dominic. "Drunk prince in the back seat. Us dragging the girl off the road. Liam, rest his soul, losing his mind. And now..." He gestured at me. "Your hot, way too smart boyfriend is leading us into detective mode against a murder cult."

The room groaned.

Dominic scowled. "Don’t call it a murder cult... Ugh"

"Well, what else do you call it?" Jasper shot back. Then he leaned toward me with a grin. "For real though, Ash. You’re hot and strategic? You sure you don’t wanna upgrade boyfriends?"

"Hands. Off." Dominic’s voice was sharp enough, his hand tightened around mine.

The twins cackled.

I chuckled.

Jasper...the wildcard. Fear turned into humor. The louder he gets, the more scared he really is.

And still, beneath the jokes and bickering, panic simmered in the room. Feet tapped. Fingers tugged at sleeves. Eyes darted.

They were spiraling, and I could feel it.

So I leaned in. "What happened that night... it was always going to come out. The only choice we have now is how it comes out. On their terms... or ours."

Dominic’s hand was still resting on my back, his thumb brushed against my shirt on instinct.

"He’s right," Dominic said, looking around at his friends. "Ash always is. So y’all better listen to him."

I froze, heat rushing to my cheeks. And of course, they all groaned.

Ian rolled his eyes.

Ren smirked like he was writing a poem about us in his head.

And Jasper? Jasper flopped back dramatically on the bed with both hands on his chest.

"God, get a room already," he groaned. "Preferably not Liam’s. Ghost vibes. It’s not sexy."

Dominic threw a pillow at him. "Shut up."

Jasper dodged it and sat up, grinning. "No, but seriously. Ash, blink twice if you need rescuing. This man’s giving simp right now."

That made everyone laugh.

Dominic was simping. And I kind of liked it.

They weren’t what I expected. Not at all.

And yet, somehow, I understood why Dominic loved them.

I leaned closer to him. "I think...they like me," I whispered.

Dominic smirked. "Of course they do. What’s not to like about you, baby?"

Jasper groaned again. "Oh my God, I can hear the flirting from here."

"Good," Dominic shot back. "Now, choke on it."