Chapter 32: I Didn’t Mean to Care
The room felt oddly still once the door clicked shut behind Luca.
Noel stood there for a moment, letting the silence settle like dust in the air. Without Luca’s usual background noise—his humming, his bad EDM playlists, the click of a controller—it was easier to breathe. But somehow... also quieter than he liked.
He tossed his bag onto the bed and let himself fall beside it, arms stretched, eyes tracing the ceiling. Just for a minute, he told himself.
Five minutes later, he sat up with a sigh, sweeping his hand through his hair.
The mess caught his eye immediately: socks kicked into corners, a shirt dangling off the desk chair, half a granola bar abandoned on the nightstand like a crime scene. Typical Luca.
Noel got up and began tidying, methodically folding, tossing wrappers, wiping down the desk. He didn’t mind doing it—not really. Cleaning helped him think, and thinking helped him feel like he was still in control of something.
But then came a sudden bzzz. Then another. And another.
Noel turned toward the sound. Luca’s phone, left carelessly beside his pillow, lit up with missed calls and buzzing messages. It kept going, screen flashing every few seconds.
Noel hesitated. He wasn’t the snooping type.
But the name glowing across the screen made his stomach turn slightly.
Kian.