Crossing lines (Noah and Aiden) novel Chapter 205

Chapter 205

Aiden

When I got home after the club, I couldn’t tell what emotion ruled me-anger, regret, longing, shame. They all felt the same now. My veins buzzed with them, like I’d been filled with static instead of blood.

I had gone there to forget, but all I’d done was remind myself of everything I’d lost.

I’d betrayed him simply by stepping foot in that place without him. The moment I’d seen Micah kneel at my feet, a jolt of guilt tore through me. I’d thought I could handle it, that it would be harmless-a distraction, a mask I could wear for a few hours until the ache dulled. But the truth was, letting him kneel there had felt like a knife to the heart. It was a mistake before it even began.

The whole scene was punishment. Not just for him, for leaving me once, not even for Noah-though God knows a part of me wanted to hurt him for those pictures with her, for looking so happy when I was coming apart-but for myself. For every decision that had led me here. I lashed out through the motions of control, trying to reclaim something I’d never really had.

Nothing happened after. Not really. Micah came home with me because I shouldn’t have been driving; I’d had more to drink than I should have. I remember unlocking the door, collapsing onto the couch while he tidied up the mess I’d made leaving that morning. I remember him speaking softly, saying something about second chances. I told him my heart wasn’t his to mend. That it never would be. Told him about Noah, about losing him, about things I should’ve never said…

He didn’t argue. He just pulled a blanket over me, brushed his thumb once over my temple, and sat nearby until I drifted. I dreamed of Noah.

I could swear I heard his phone’s ringtone, that single buzz that used to make me smile no matter where I was. I reached for it in my sleep-half-awake, half-hopeful-but there was nothing. Just the quiet.

When I woke hours later, Micah was gone. The house was still. His scent lingered faintly, fresh cologne over leather. For a moment, I thought it was Noah’s. I buried my face in the pillow and tried not to breathe.

Maybe this was what I deserved-echoes of the wrong people, ghosts that looked like the ones I’d loved.

I sat up, rubbed my hands over my face, and laughed under my breath. It sounded cracked. Christ, I’m losing it.

The screen of my phone glowed beside me. No messages. No calls. Just silence.

I should have felt numb by now, but somehow the silence hurt worse than anything else.

1 stood, poured the last of the whiskey down the sink, and let the glass roll from my fingers into the drain. The sound it made-hollow, final-felt like punctuation.

If Noah was out there somewhere, smiling in another life, then this was how I’d love him now, From far away. Quietly. Without expecting anything back.

I’d broken enough things trying to hold on.

The next morning, I woke to a soft chime-Micah’s name flashing across my screen.

Micah:

Good morning, Sir. I just wanted to thank you… for that night. For trusting me enough to let me close again.

Still “Sir.” He never forgot,

I closed my eyes and sighed.

Me:

1/2

6:15 pm pp

Chapter 205

Thank you for helping me get home. Not my brightest moment.

The typing dots pulsed for a few seconds before his next message appeared.

Micah:

Would it be alright if I came by? We don’t have to do a scene. We could just talk… or sit for a while. It’s almost Christmas.

6:15 pm P P X.

Crossing Lines