Chapter 13 #2
“The audacity to say that out loud is unreal,” my voice shakes, but my rage holds.
“I don’t know why you thought it was okay to get Jackson involved and barge into my life again, but let me make something very clear: I don’t care about you.
I don’t want to hear from you. I don’t want to see you again. ”
“Really?” he asks. “I don’t think you mean that.”
“Honestly, Noah.” I let out a dry laugh as I step closer. “You must’ve hit your head as a child.”
I pause, watching him blink like I might hit him.
“You made me skeptical of the entire male race. You hurt me so much that I wasn’t even myself anymore. I had to rebuild my confidence, my aspirations, my life. So believe me when I say that I want absolutely nothing to do with you, you inconsiderate asshole.”
I grab his shoes and chuck them at him. I’m done.
“Now get the hell out of my apartment.”
He puts them on, taking his sweet time. His last pathetic attempt at control. My arms are crossed over my chest, puffed out.
Surprisingly, he stays quiet. I open the door and all but shove him through.
“And leave my coworkers alone!” I shout as he disappears down the hall.
“Your loss,” he yells back.
I slam the door behind me and lean against it. My hands are shaking, probably from both the cold and all the frustration that comes with Noah.
Finally, after all this time, I feel lighter. Like that granted me the closure I didn’t know I needed. Not all men are the problem. The problem is dating men who behave like teenagers. Unfortunately for him, it doesn’t look like he’s going to mature anymore.
I can’t put my life on pause because of him. I won’t.
Live and learn. I’ve done both. I lived through the red flags. Now I know how to spot them.
As the anger fades, my body starts to process the crash. I’m drained. My hands are freezing. My hair is a mess, still damp from the rain.
And yet—for the first time in a long while—I feel something close to peace. Contempt.
The hot water from the shower melts through every clenched muscle. I stay under until my skin wrinkles. By the time I towel off, I feel clean. Clean from all the nasty things that had stuck to me during my time with Noah.
No appetite, no energy. Just pajamas and my bed. I grab my phone from my purse and call Emma. No answer, but a message comes through seconds later.
Emma
Brunch day with family; can’t call.
What’s up?
Noah was here.
Two seconds later, her face fills my screen.
“What the actual fuck?” she says. I hear her mom scolding her in the background. I laugh.
“Yup,” I say, flopping back on the pillows. “I spent the day with Harrison. We were tourists today. He took me around visiting all the monuments. It was a great day—until the skies opened up. We hid under a tree, shared an intense kiss…”
I pause. The memory rushes back in full color. The kind of kiss that stains you.
“…and then came back to mine. Except we didn’t make it inside because Noah was sitting at my door like the stalker he is. So, I––”
“JULIA THOMAS!” She screeches. “You kissed him?!”
I did.
I close my eyes, and yep, his lips are still there. Noah had taken me by such surprise that the kiss had almost slipped my mind.
“Um… I guess?”
“What do you mean you guess?” she demands, about to have a nervous breakdown.
“I couldn’t resist! He was pressing me against this tree. Wet clothes. Wet everything.”
“I wish I could’ve seen it,” she sighs, without an ounce of shame. “First kiss under the rain. Girl, your life is turning into a movie. Enjoy it.”
“Movies are fiction,” I remind her. “Anyway. Noah was here.”
“Who cares about him?” She huffs, with a roll of the eyes. “What did he want now?”
“To fuck. He wanted to fuck.”
She spits her drink all over her phone. “WHAT?”
I nod. “He got my address from Jackson, broke into my building, and waited who knows how long to get me into bed. I let it rip. Said everything I should’ve said months ago.”
“Good. He’s a dick,” she answers. “Where’s Harrison? Can I say hi?”
“I don’t know.” I shrug. “I told him to go when Noah showed up.”
“Seriously, Jay. You know I love you, but why haven’t you called that man already?
Bang it out! You’re free now—no more ex bullshit,” she says, giving the kind of tough love only she can.
“He was about to get into your bed, most certainly to rock your entire existence into another galaxy, and you haven’t told him it’s done? ”
“I just feel like the moment has passed,” I admit. “He didn’t seem very happy when I let Noah in.”
“Probably because he was cock-blocked by an asshole.”
“Hmm… I don’t think that’s what was going through his mind,” I tell her, thinking back about the way he’d been standing in front of me. “I’m pretty sure he was ready to knock Noah out.”
“He should have.”
“Emma!”
“What? He deserves it,” she says. “I think you should call him.”
“Maybe.” I stare at the ceiling. “I’ll think about it.”
“Wow. What a ride,” she says cheerfully. “Joshua Harrison knows I exist and is dating my best friend. Man, I can’t wait for the wedding!”
“Okay,” I laugh. “That’s my cue to leave. You’ve officially lost your mind.”
I hang up and sit there, phone still warm in hand, her words louder than they should be.
I want to call him. I do. But the world doesn’t revolve around me, and I was the one that told him to go. I can’t barge back in and expect him to be waiting.
It’s only nine p.m. I try to distract myself, but nothing sticks. Three shows, endless scrolling, and zero satisfaction later, I give up.
I call it an early night. I try to sleep. My body is exhausted, but my mind is running sprints. I toss. Twist. Flip my pillow. Not even forcing my eyes closed helps.
I groan into the darkness. Fine. There’s only one thing left to do.
I pick up my phone and call him.