Chapter 38
NOVA play: Hearts on Fire – Timmy Trumpet Remix ft. ILLENIUM, Dabin, Lights, Timmy Trumpet
Ifinished washing my hands and walked out of the bathroom to find Jay leaning against the wall, waiting for me. The hallway that led to the restrooms was empty, and the music from the bar was slightly muffled back here.
I startled a little bit when I saw him. I hadn’t expected him to follow me, and I gave him a tentative smile.
“Hi,” I said, taking in the serious look on his face.
He stared at me for a beat, then uncrossed his legs, gesturing to the space between his feet.
“Come over here, please.” The order rolled through the dimly lit hallway, and before I could think better of it, I found myself obeying.
He was leaning against the wall in such a way that when I was nestled between his thighs, we were eye level with each other, and it felt incredibly intimate.
My cheeks heated as he slowly raised a hand to the side of my face, gently tucking a lock of my hair behind my ear.
I shivered, and my eyelids fluttered.
He was always so gentle. It felt so good.
“So…you like it when I touch you, Milo?” he rumbled, and I nodded. Swallowing hard.
“Yeah…”
“Good. That’s good,” he breathed, running his hands through my hair again. “Because I like touching you, too.” He guided my head closer to him, and our breath mingled in the small sliver of space between us.
“Yeah, I know you’re probably touch-starved living here for so long. Don’t worry. I know it doesn’t have anything to do with me,” I rambled, my whole body still humming from the gentle play of his fingers in my hair.
His fingers tightened, and he jerked my head back slightly so he could look at me better.
“Is that what you think this is, Milo? You think I followed you down here because I’m touch starved?”
I swallowed and nodded—or as much as I could with the way his fingers were tangled in my hair.
“Well, I think everyone here kind of is.”
He chuckled softly, but there was no joy in it.
“You’re not wrong about that.”
He raised his other hand to my face and stroked his thumb over my cheek, his eyes shining with that look he always seemed to get when he was watching me.
“Your cheeks are always so warm,” he breathed, and to my surprise, he leaned in and brushed his lips against them.
First my right one, then the left.
“Are we ever going to talk about the crush that you have on me?” he asked, his lips now so close to mine I could almost taste them.
My heart leapt to my throat, and I gasped as anxiety spiked through me, but he pressed a finger to my lips to silence me.
“Shhh, shh, shh. Please don’t get upset. It’s okay, Milo.”
Even the alcohol couldn’t hold back my embarrassment about the fact that he knew about my illegal crush.
“I hate that you saw that,” I whimpered, and he shook his head, his lips curling in a tender smile.
“I don’t.” The tip of his nose brushed against mine, and I sighed, melting into him even more. “I’m glad I saw.”
I whimpered as he continued to hover inches away from my lips.
“Want to know another reason I didn’t want to extract your first memory of me?”
I found myself nodding, my mouth so dry I was unable to speak.
“Because the NeuroGlyphs showed me what you thought when you first saw me. You thought I was scary, but also the hottest person you’ve ever seen in your life.” He chuckled, clearly amused.
“Ugh… That’s so embarrassing…” I whined, though my lashes fluttered again as he gently stroked my cheek and massaged the back of my neck.
“You don’t have to be embarrassed about anything with me, Milo. I’m a safe space for you.”
“Yeah?” I squeaked.
He nodded. “Yeah… Do you still think I’m scary?”
I swallowed. “Yes. But not for the same reasons.”
“Why are you scared of me?” He sounded upset.
“I’m scared of the way you make me feel. I don’t want to mess things up.”
“I already told you, you’re not messing anything up. If anything, I’m the one fucking things up here.”
I frowned. “You’re not.”
“I am. But I can’t help it, Milo. I wish you could read NeuroGlyphs. I wish I could show you what I thought of you the first time I saw you.”
His lips skated briefly against mine, and he made this delicious, low growling sound as electricity sparked between us.
My mouth parted in a gasp, and he turned his head slightly to the side, inhaling sharply to swallow the sound. He hovered, just out of reach, and the air between us turned white hot with anticipation.
“Can I kiss you, Milo?”
I hesitated. Friends didn’t kiss. But… Jeez, did I ever want him to kiss me.
“Please?” he whispered. He was so close. I just needed to move in an inch, and our lips would be touching.
The way he said please made my knees weak, and I found myself nodding.
Yep. Sober Milo was going to be so pissed.
“Thank fuck,” Jay breathed, and before I knew what was happening, his soft lips sealed against mine, and the world fell away.
The only thing that existed was Jay and the way his lips felt on mine.
He controlled my head gently, cradling me into him and pulling me deeper into his chest.
My own hands moved on their own accord to cup his face, and he groaned as my fingers tentatively moved to explore his soft locks.
“Christ...” he cursed, and the kiss intensified.
He brushed his tongue against the seam of my lips, and I parted for him on instinct.
My brain lit up as his hot, wet tongue slipped into my mouth and languidly stroked against mine.
“Mmm…” he hummed, nipping, then sucking on my lower lip. “Fuck, Milo.” One of his hands dropped to my hips, and he tugged me in closer, grinding himself into me.
My eyes flew open in surprise as I felt how hard he was, and I jerked back, my cheeks flooding with heat.
“Jay…” I rasped, staring at his wet, kiss-swollen lips. “You have a boner!” Drunk Milo exclaimed, and Jay let out a puff of laughter, his eyes shining with amusement.
“Mhmm.” He nodded, rolling his hips up into mine so I could feel it again. “So do you.” I glanced down in shock to find that he was very, very right.
“Ohmygod… Sober Milo is gonna be so mad…” I mumbled, and Jay laughed again, tugging my head back in for another kiss.
“You leave sober Milo to me. I’ll set him straight,” he murmured against my lips before pressing his tongue deep back into my mouth and drawing another pathetic whine out of me.
“You like that.” He chuckled. It wasn’t a question, but I nodded anyway.
“Yeah… You feel so good, Jay…”
“So do you. You have no idea,” he rumbled, sucking my tongue into his mouth and pulsing it softly like it was made of candy. “I just want to taste every inch of you.”
My whole body was hot. The blush that normally welled in my cheeks had travelled down my neck and chest, and I was sure my entire body was pink with arousal.
He kissed down the side of my face and ran his hot tongue over my jawbone before latching onto the sensitive skin just below my ear.
I whined as he bit me there, his hips rolling up in mine as he groaned against me.
“You’re fucking perfect,” he purred, kissing my throat over and over. His gentle nips and kisses on my sensitive skin caused my cock to harden even more, and soon I was leaking in my pants with need.
“Jay—”
“What’s going on here?” an angry voice cut through the hallway, and we both jumped.
I gasped and stumbled away from Jay. I tripped on my own feet and nearly fell to the ground, but Jay grabbed my wrist just in time, jerking me back up and preventing me from falling.
We turned to find Sebastian standing at the end of the hallway. His hands were in his pockets, and his blue eyes were like chips of ice.
“Shit,” Jay cursed, and I was shaking with terror.
Now I remembered why I didn’t drink. I could barely keep my life from falling apart when I was sober. Alcohol was just asking for trouble. And now, because I’d been a stupid idiot and gotten drunk, I was definitely going to get fired.
So much anxiety exploded through my body that I was worried I might start crying.
I swallowed back the tears, doing my best to get a grip on myself so I could explain what had just happened to Sebastian.
Before I had a chance to speak, Jay tugged me slightly behind him and faced Sebastian, sliding his own hands into his pockets and mirroring the other man’s stance.
“Hey, Seb,” he said evenly, and Sebastian’s eyes narrowed.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing? You know what Luke is going to do if he finds out about this?” Sebastian snapped, and Jay sighed, running his hand through his glossy waves.
He turned back to look at me. His hair was tousled from where I had tugged on it, and his lips were still swollen from kissing me. Even in my anxiety, I felt breathless from how hot he looked.
Get your fill now. You’re probably never going to see him again now that you’re fired… The tears were threatening to fall again at the thought of never seeing Jay again.
“Milo, why don’t you head home? I need to talk to Sebastian for a minute.”
I stood there, frozen and shaking, my eyes so wide I knew Jay could see how much my anxiety was eating me alive.
Completely ignoring Sebastian, he brushed my hair back behind my ear and straightened out my now slightly crooked glasses.
“Go home, Milo. Everything’s going to be okay. Wait up for me. I’ll find you when I get back.” He spoke low enough that Sebastian couldn’t hear him and gave me a reassuring smile.
“Uhm—”
“It’s okay. Please, go.”
I nodded and awkwardly fumbled with my glasses, pushing them farther up my nose.
“Yeah, okay.” Shuffling away from Jay, I shot a quiet ‘sorry’ to Sebastian as I passed him.
He only frowned at me, pursing his lips into a firm line, and my anxiety intensified.
Once I was out of the bar, I nearly ran home.
I tripped and fell twice, scrapping my palms on the asphalt, and by the time I turned onto Amygdala Ave, I’d lost the battle with my tears, and I was crying.
I was so stupid.
Why couldn’t I just be normal for once?
I always messed everything up.
Now I was going to lose my dream job, and probably my only friend, because I was a pathetic loser who couldn’t be cool for even one second.
NOVA greeted me as I stumbled into my cube, but I ignored her, collapsing into my couch and curling up into myself.
In my dark cube with no one but NOVA to see, I broke down and mourned the loss of both Jay and the job I’d dreamed of for my whole life.