Chapter 247
I tuck the folder away in the back of my closet, behind a stack of sweaters I probably won’t touch again until fall. My fingers linger on it for a second longer than necessary, the weight of what it means still heavy in my chest, in my heart.
Zaid has always given me comfort, has always made sure I’m okay, that I’m taken care of and the revelation of this just made everything so much clearer to me.
I don’t tell Zaid or Aiden that Jake stopped by,
And luckily for me, Jake never comes again.
The rest of the week passes by much quicker than any of us wanted. The three of us spend as much time as we can together. We swim in the mornings, our skin warmed by the sun. We laugh and dive, testing how long we can hold our breath.
We eat a bit too much. Zaid manages to get us some alcohol, so we drink a little, too. We have drunken confessions at night and laugh at each other.
Zaid always manages to win any game we play and I begin to side with Aiden, accusing him of cheating. He swears he’s not.
Aiden and I warm up to each other by the end of it. We can talk and laugh without Zaid and it feels natural.
Sometimes, I catch Zaid looking at me when he thinks I’m not paying attention. And sometimes, I look right back. But we don’t touch, not yet. Not with Aiden still here. I couldn’t do that to him.
On Aiden’s last night with us, we throw him a small going away party. Nothing fancy, just lights on the patio, music, and good food. I invite Elena and her boyfriend, who turns out to be even sweeter in person than in the stories she’s told me.
His name is Noah, and he has kind eyes and a charming awkwardness that makes everyone comfortable around him. He’s incredibly smart and the only person that can keep up with his quirks is Zaid. Elena, Aiden and I just watch them like they’re speaking a different language.
At some point, the boys start a board game in the living room. Something about war and territories. Not my kind of thing, or Elena’s, for that matter. We retreat to the kitchen to wash the last of the dishes.
We’re not talking at first, laughing as we hear the guys yelling at each other from the living room.
Elena bumps my elbow slightly. I turn toward her just in time to see her lifting an eyebrow at me, her wet hands still dripping soap
suds.
“What the heck did you do to Aiden?” she asks, lowering her voice.
I press my lips together, returning my eyes to the plate in my hand before asking. “What do you mean?”
She sighs and I swear she rolls her eyes. “Don’t play dumb with me, Ali. He’s looking at you like a lost puppy.”
I wince, drying my hands on a towel. “Yeah, I know.”
“Well?” she presses, nudging my arm. “What happened?”
I exhale slowly, shoulders sagging under the truth I’ve been holding back from her.
“I was in a relationship,” I say, keeping my voice low. “With Zaid. Aiden. And Jake.”
Elena’s eyes nearly pop out of her skull. “Wait. What the fuck?”
1/2
Chapter 247
“Yeah,” I nod, eyes fixed on the soapy sink.
She stares at me like she’s trying to calculate something complicated in her head.
“I ended things with Jake,” I continue, voice quiet. “And with Aiden.
“Oh.” She gasps, drying her own hands on the apron I let her borrow “Not Zaid?”
I shake my head. “We still have to figure out exactly what our relationship will look like, but no, not Zaid. He’s the only one I want. I think he has always been the only one I have ever wanted.”
Chapter Comments
LIKE
POST COMMENT NOW
< SHARE
