Invisible To Her Bully (Jessa and Noah) novel Chapter 191

Chapter 191

Jessa

By the time I slipped out of my heels and set them carefully by my bed, the house was quiet.

Too quiet.

The kind of quiet that makes you notice everything–the faint hum of the fridge downstairs, the tick of the clock on my wall, the rustle of my dress as I cased it off and hung it gently in the closet like it was something fragile. Something important.

Because it was.

I stood there for a long moment just looking at it. The fabric still held a bit of warmth from my body, a faint trace of perfume and nerves and laughter. It didn’t look like a costume anymore. It looked like proof.

Tonight had actually happened.

I sat on the edge of my bed, still in my slip, hair loose around my shoulders, and let myself breathe. Really breathe. My chest felt full in a way I wasn’t used to–like my heart had been stretched and didn’t quite know how to settle back into its usual guarded place.

Homecoming.

I’d danced. I’d laughed. I’d been kissed–openly, confidently, without anyone pretending it didn’t mean something.

Noah hadn’t hidden me.

That alone felt surreal.

a movie I didn’t

I flopped back onto my pillows and stared at the ceiling, replaying moments like sce want to end. The way the lights had glinted off the gym floor. The music pounding through my bones. The way Noah’s hands had felt steady on my waist when we danced–like he wasn’t worried about who was watching. Like he was proud.

I smiled into the darkness.

There were whispers, sure. I wasn’t naïve. I caught them in passing glances, overheard fragments in the bathroom, felt the weight of curious eyes more than once.

But for the first time… they didn’t own me.

They didn’t decide how the night went.

I’d spent so many years bracing myself for humiliation–waiting for the moment someone would laugh or point or say something cruel enough to remind me of my place.

It never came.

Instead, Noah kissed me by the refreshment table like it was the most natural thing in the world.

And I’d kissed him back.

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Chapter 191

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I rolled ontoalluni my side, hugging a pillow to my chest, my smile softening into thoughtful.

ning quieter. Something

I wasn’t stupid. I knew this didn’t magically erase years of insecurity. I knew tomorrow–or Monday, or next week–someone would probably say something dumb again. Ask what he saw in me. Wonder out loud why he’d chosen me.

That voice still lived in the back of my mind.

But tonight, it was quieter.

Because tonight, I’d felt wanted. Seen. Chosen.

And even if–even if–this didn’t last forever… no one could take this night from me.

My phone buzzed on the nightstand.

I grabbed it before I could overthink, my heart skipping when I saw his name.

Noah.

Noah: You home?

I smiled and typed back.

Me: Yeah. Just got changed. You?

A pause. Then-

Another pause. Longer this time. I imagined him lying on his bed, maybe staring at the ceiling like I was, replaying the same moments. The idea made something flutter in my stomach.

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