A Kiss At Midnight (Delilah and Caelum) novel Chapter 28

Chapter 28

By the time I finished the biology questions Caelum had given me, I was officially convinced I deserved financial compensation for emotional distress.

vouchers

Not because the work was impossible, unfortunately, it wasn’t. which was annoying in itself because it meant his tutoring sessions were actually working.

I stared down at the paper in mild irritation, twirling the pen between my fingers before glancing toward the hallway again, still nothing.

I frowned. Thirty minutes

Thirty whole minutes

The boy had handed me work, muttered something about needing a minute, then disappeared upstairs like he was escaping a crime scene.

And honestly?

He had been acting weird all afternoon, moody distracted and weirdly tense.

What the hell crawled up his ass and died

One second he was explaining cell structures and the next he looked like he wanted to either punch a wall or crawl inside

one.

I narrowed my eyes slightly at the empty hallway,, dropping my pen onto the counter with a sigh before leaning back in the

chair.

The kitchen was too quiet now, actually, the whole house felt too quiet. And boredom mixed with curiosity was genuinely one of the worst combinations for me specifically.

I glanced toward the staircase again, then shrugged to myself. If he was going to vanish for half an hour, then I was legally allowed to snoop around a little.

That was just fairness

Slipping off the stool, I wandered out of the kitchen slowly, my footsteps soft against the polished floor. Despite coming here multiple times already.. I realized I’d barely seen any part of Caelum’s house outside the kitchen and living room.

The hallway leading toward the living room was lined with framed photographs, and I slowed almost immediately.

Baby pictures

There were baby pictures everywhere. Tiny little Caelum stared back at me from at least twenty different frames looking painfully serious for a child who probably still needed help tying his shoes at the time.

I moved closer to one picture, trying not to laugh. “I guess this wasn’t a a phase. Good to know.”

Little eight year old Caelum stood proudly beside some giant science project while holding a medal with the same expression he still wore whenever he corrected my biology answers.

I kept walking slowly, studying more pictures along the wall. There were photos of family vacations, birthday parties, holiday dinners. Pictures of him winning awards, more awards.

And surprising everyone not, more awards.

Chapter 28

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Honestly, it was becoming slightly irritating how academically gifted he apparently had been since birth. There was one picture of him missing his front teeth while holding some robotics trophy.

Another of him at what looked like a spelling competition, then one where he couldn’t have been older than six standing beside his father in a tiny suit.

I stared at that one a little longer. His father looked stern even in photographs, not cruel, just a little bit serious. The kind of man who probably expected perfection naturally, but his mother softened every picture she was in.

Beautiful smile, gentle eyes, the type of woman who looked warm without even trying. Then there was his younger brother I paused at another picture, right, twelve years old. I remembered Caelum mentioning it once.

But now that I thought about it, I’d literally never seen him before. Not once. Which felt odd considering how often I’d started coming over.

Maybe the kid genuinely stayed busy, or maybe Caelum hid him every time I came around because I was apparently corrupting the household.

The thought almost made me snort.

Because honestly? I absolutely was.

I folded my arms loosely as my gaze drifted across another perfect-looking family picture. And suddenly the contrast between his family and mine hit a little too hard.

They looked….happy. Not the fake kind of happy, but actually happy.

Meanwhile my mother and I could barely survive one conversation without wanting to emotionally destroy each other afterward.

Looking away from the picture quietly, It was strange sometimes, seeing families that actually seemed to function normally. Strange enough that part of me didn’t fully know what to do with it.

My attention shifted toward a shelf nearby, and immediately curiosity sparked again. A photo album sat neatly near the edge, and unfortunately for everybody involved, I lacked self-control.

I picked it up carefully before opening it, and try not to awe at this baby picture. Truly baby Caelum was offensively adorable, with glasses, messy dark hair and ound cheeks.

I flipped through more pages, unable to stop smiling.

Toddler Caelum asleep on books, him dressed as some scientist for halloween. Tiny him pouting beside a birthday cake.

“How are you somehow still a nerd in every stage of life?” I muttered softly, turning to another page, just to halt when a picture catches my attention.

It was different from the rest, somehow.

His younger brother sat on a bench wearing a beanie and headphones his face tilted toward the sky like he was distracted by something above him.

And beside him sat Caelum, not looking at the camera, but at his brother. The expression on his face stopped me for a second, soft, protective,, and gentle in a way I hadn’t really seen from him before.

It made something weird settle quietly in my chest.

“What are you doing?” I nearly died as I whipped around so fast I almost dropped the entire album.

Caelum stood a few feet behind me looking mildly startled by my reaction.

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12:43 Mon, Jul

Chapter 28

And

Oh

i

So that explained the thirty minutes

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His dark hair was damp, messy strands falling over his forehead like he’d rushed drying it. He had on a loose gray sweatpants hanging low on his hips and a black long-sleeve shirt that looked like he’d thrown it on carelessly.

My eyes narrowed slightly. “Why is your hair wet?”

He bite at the bottom of his lips, avoiding my gaze. “I took a shower.”

Right.

A cold shower probably, seemed like we’ve found the reason for him being all moody. Apparently somebody was struggling today.

Honestly, why didn’t he just masturbate like a normal teenage boy instead of acting like he was battling demons every time.

Before I could ask, he beat me to it. “What are you doing?”

I looked down guiltily at the album in my hands. “I was just…” I cleared my throat awkwardly. “Looking at pictures since someone disappeared for half an hour.”

His gaze flicked briefly toward the album before returning to me, then II pointed lightly toward the picture.

“Where’s your brother anyway?” I muttered out casually. “I’ve literally never seen him.”

The shift in him happened instantly. “He’s usually not around,” his tone flattened immediately.

“He has after school lessons most days, what is it to you.” His voice cold and edgy.

I scoffs at him. “Geez.”

His brows pulled together slightly. “What?”

“You don’t have to answer like I insulted your bloodline.”

His lips parted immediately then stopped, I could tell he’d almost snapped back before catching himself. A second later, he sighed quietly.

“You’re right,” he admitted, “sorry.” That surprised me enough that I stared at him for a second. “I’ve just been…” He rubbed lightly at the back of his neck, “a little out of it today.”

No kidding

“And I shouldn’t take it out on you.” I nodded slowly.

At least he recognized it, that counted for something.

“Well,” I said after a second, placing the album back carefully, “since you abandoned me downstairs to suffer alone, you should give me a tour.”

“There’s nothing to see.”

1 scoffed loudly “This house mighy not be relative big, but I’m sure there is something..” I folded my arms. “A garden maybe?”

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