MasukAiden The rest of the ride stayed tense with me shifting in my seat, feeling sticky and aware of every look from the driver. “Why is he staring like that?” I thought. When we finally dropped off, I could not help thinking that cab guy stared at me a bit unusually. “Like he knew something or maybe just got a show he did not expect. Weird!”Ethan paid and pulled me straight toward this club on the corner. The music already thumping loud from inside, and the lights flashing! It looked good, but my stomach twisted. “Wait, Ethan!” I said. “I am kind of scared of places like this.” I didn’t want to tell him about the mysterious guy, not after what happened before. I still don't want to remember half of it! “Can we go somewhere else?”He just grinned and said, “Nah, you will be fine with me here! Come on! One night will not kill you. I got you! Promise!” He tugged my arm, and we went in the door. The bass hit my chest hard! “Wow! So loud!” Bodies were moving everywhere.Ethan led us to th
Chapter 120 Aiden My breathing came hard and fast as I ran down that narrow path with my hips aching like hell from the bruises and every step making them flare up worse. The phone felt slippery in my sweaty palm and I kept trying to unlock it while glancing over my shoulder at those footsteps that would not quit. I hit Chris’s name to call him but my thumb slipped and it dropped before I could even hear it ring. Then I tried typing a text saying someone’s following me but my fingers shook too much and I gave up. The trees rustled a little in the wind and distant campus sounds like cars way off felt too far to help me at all. I pushed harder not knowing where I was headed just needing to get away from whoever kept matching my pace.Oh no! “Come on, come on! Unlock already!” I whispered to the phone. I turned a corner between two old buildings, and the footsteps got louder right behind me. So I spun around ready to yell or swing or something! “Who are you? Leave me alone!” A fig
Aiden Chapter 119I stood there frozen between Chris and Jovian as Chris stepped all the way into the room and shut the door behind him with a soft sound that felt too loud in the heavy silence. My heart was already beating fast from everything that had happened . Jovian leaned against the counter with his arms folded and that familiar smirk playing on his lips while he watched Chris closely. I could still feel the warmth from where Jovian had rubbed my back earlier and the bruises on my hips ached under my shirt as a reminder of the night before with Chris. Chris looked at me first and his eyes moved over my face and then down to where my phone was still in my hand from his text. He did not speak right away but I saw his jaw tighten when he caught the tail end of what Jovian had said about him being shady and controlling things.Chris took one slow step closer to us and his voice came out low and dangerous when he finally answered Jovian without even trying to deny the warning.
Aiden The way he had smiled a little when I said thanks for the food. How he touched my hand across the table and asked if I was okay. I had felt safe with him even after everything. Then the rejection when I asked to stay one more day. The way he called me extremely emotional like I was the problem. It made my chest tight just remembering it.Jovian did not back off. He put his plate in the sink next to mine and turned to face me. “You do not have to tell me who did it. But you look like you need someone to talk to. Come on back to the table. I can listen if you want. Or I can do something else to help you relax.”I tried to move past him toward the main room but he caught my arm gently. Not hard enough to hurt but enough to stop me. “Aiden wait. Do not run off yet. I missed you while I was gone. Things were rough out there and coming back here to see you is the first good thing in a while.”His words sounded real but I knew better. I pulled my arm free and rubbed where he had touch
Chapter 117Aiden Jovian kept his hand right there on my thigh the whole time like it was the most normal thing in the world. I tried to shift away in the chair but he just held on a little tighter and kept stirring the pot with his other hand. The pasta sat steaming in front of me on the table and my stomach turned even though the smell was pretty good. I did not feel like eating at all. My head was still spinning from everything that happened with Chris earlier that day and now here was Jovian acting like we were just two regular guys catching up after a long time.“Eat Aiden. You look really tired. I made this while I waited for you to get back. It is nothing special but it should fill you up.” He said it in this soft voice that made me remember the Jovian I met when I first moved in here. That was what threw me off the most. He sounded caring like he actually meant it and that made me more nervous than if he had tried to force things right away. I picked up the fork and moved
Chapter 116 Aiden My hands were sweaty on the coffee cup and my heart would not slow down. I kept watching his face for any sign that he might say yes. Part of me already felt stupid for asking because what if he thought I was pushing too hard or getting too attached. I wished I could take them back but it was too late. Chris froze for a second. Then he shook his head slowly and rubbed the back of his neck like he always did when something bothered him.“We can’t Aiden,” he said. “The caretaker might come back any moment. My parents pop in all the time without warning. It is not safe to stay here longer.”I blinked hard and felt my stomach drop. I had hoped he would agree at least for a little while. Instead everything felt heavy. “Wait what? You are being serious right now Chris? After everything last night you are telling me no?”He would not look me in the eyes at first. I studied every little movement in his jaw and the way his shoulders tensed up. It looked like guilt or mayb
Aiden’s POV I bolted back to my room like my ass was on fire, slammed the door so hard the posters on the wall fluttered, then just stood there with my back pressed flat against it, chest heaving, trying to pretend my brain wasn’t actively melting down around me. I saw it. I fucking saw it. But my
Jovian’s POV I’ve always been the safe one, the quiet one, the guy who sculpts everything out of clay because it’s “art” and not because I’m horny twenty-four seven, but let’s be real, half the time it is because I’m horny, and the other half it’s because Aiden’s the only person I’ve ever wanted t
Aiden’s POV The second I finally got my headphones back on and the bass hard enough to rattle my teeth, I thought maybe, just maybe the universe was giving me a five-minute break from being its personal punching bag. Laptop open, I was trying to prepare the materials concerning my scholarship,
Aiden’s POV Dr. Patel kept clicking through screens like my entire future wasn’t hanging by a thread, muttering about “system flags” and “additional documentation” while I sat there nodding like a broken toy, hoodie still knotted around my waist, ass stinging every time I shifted. She finally pri







