Lahat ng Kabanata ng Inlove with my stepbrother : Kabanata 21 - Kabanata 25

I woke to the weight of him pressed against me, his arm draped over my waist, his chest warm beneath my cheek. For a second, I couldn’t move. The memory of last night, the movie, the closeness, the way he held me, hit me all at once, like a tidal wave I wasn’t ready to face.Panic clawed at me. My heart hammered. I didn’t belong here. I didn’t belong in his arms. I had no right. Slowly, carefully, I tried to extricate myself, holding my breath as I eased out of the sheets.His arm tightened slightly. I froze. Did he feel me moving? Did he know I was slipping away? I risked a glance, he was still asleep, the faint rise and fall of his chest calm and steady. I let out a shaky breath and tiptoed toward the door, praying the floorboards didn’t creak.Once I was in my own room, heart still racing, I wrapped myself in my pajamas like a shield. The panic hadn’t left; it had only amplified. I didn’t know how to face him, or myself.Breakfast felt like walking onto a stage. The smell of toast

I lay sprawled on my bed, the soft glow of my bedside lamp casting long shadows across the room. It was late, the kind of quiet night where the city's hum faded into a distant murmur. I'd stripped down to just my tank top and panties after a long shower, my skin still damp and warm. My phone sat on the pillow beside me, screen dark, but I couldn't shake the restlessness buzzing under my skin. Work had been a grind, and Jaxon, God, Jaxon, had been on my mind all day. That intense stare of his in the school hallway, the way his shirt hugged his shoulders. I pushed the thought away, not ready to dwell on the impossible crush I'd developed on my stepbrother. i couldn't believe i was actually saying that A soft vibration jolted me from my haze. I snatched up the phone, heart skipping as I saw the notification from Unknown Number, the mystery texter who'd been lighting up my nights for weeks. No name, no face, just these electric words that made my pulse race. Unknown Number: Hey, strang

Author's povThe last thing Amaya wanted was to think about Jaxon.Unfortunately, he seemed to follow her everywhere, even when he wasn't around.She sat in the lecture hall with her notebook open, but the words on the board refused to make sense. The professor had been talking for almost twenty minutes, yet she hadn't written a single line.Her mind kept drifting.The strange conversations.The little moments they shared.The confusing way he could make her angry and calm her down in the same breath.She hated it.More than that, she hated that she couldn't understand herself anymore.When the lecture finally ended, students rushed out of the classroom in groups. Amaya took her time packing her books, hoping the slow walk back to the hostel would clear her head.She had barely stepped outside when someone called her name."Amaya!"She turned and saw Kian jogging toward her.He was smiling, but there was something nervous about him that she hadn't noticed before."Hey," she said."Hi.