Chapter Twenty One Closure
Chapter Twenty One
Closure
W
aking up, my body aches in the best possible way, the memories drifting back in warm, dizzy pieces. A slow smile creeps across my face… but it disappears the second Daniel pops into my mind.
I picture him standing there the other night, watching me leave with Levy like I don’t care about him. I do but not that much. I’ve told him countless times that we can’t be together, but he won’t take no for an answer.
I still can’t believe I slept through the entire day yesterday—all I remember is stumbling in from Levy’s place and Arina laying into me before I crashed.
I’ll call him today and smooth things over. Because if I don’t—and I run into him at another party, acting all jealous and wounded again—I’m not letting him guilt-trip me into fucking me in a bathroom. Not my finest hour.
And who knows… maybe he’ll even throw in a goodbye round for old times’ sake. The poor guy deserves closure—or at least a distraction before I break his heart.
I drag myself into the shower and scrub like I’m trying to wash off regret—twice. As much as I admire Levy’s scent, I want to smell like me again. Not last night. Not anyone else. Just me.
Wrapped in a towel, I check my phone again. Still nothing from Levy.
Maybe he’s busy. Maybe he actually has a job—how responsible of him. I keep forgetting I’m jobless and think everyone else’s schedule is as open as mine. Whatever.
Looking at my list of missed calls, I stare at Daniel’s name. He blew up my phone all day yesterday, and now there are at least five more missed calls, two missed FaceTimes, and six unopened texts waiting for me. My thumb hovers over the screen before I finally exhale and press call.
“Hello?” His voice comes through sharp, tight with irritation. He doesn’t even give me a chance to say anything first.“Well, nice of you to remember I exist,” he continues, his words clipped. “You couldn’t answer a single text? Not one call Jainey?”
I sigh, pressing the phone against my ear as I pace toward the window. “Hi to you to, Daniel . And yeah, sorry, I was a little busy—like sleeping off the headache you basically gave me.” I exaggerate.
He scoffs. “Sleeping? That what we’re calling it? You left with that guy, Jainey. You act like I don’t know what happens after you’ve been drinking.”
“You know… you’re cute when you get possessive, but let’s not start acting like this is something it’s never been.”
There’s a pause. I can hear him exhale, that heavy kind of sigh that means he’s trying not to snap. “So, you’re trying to tell me you didn’t stay with him?”
I roll my eyes even though he can’t see me. “Oh my God, Daniel. Relax. I’m home. See? Perfectly alive and well—not chained in anyone’s basement or in his house. You can stop with all the questions now.”
“Jainey—”
“Daniel,” I cut him off. “If you’re that jealous, you can come see me later, okay? We’ll talk. Or yell. Whatever helps you close those pretty blue eyes at night.”
He hesitates, voice lowering. “Later doesn’t work for me. I’m already heading over.”
Of course he is.
I stare at the phone, blinking once before letting out a dry laugh. “Shocker,” I mutter.
“I just want to see you,” he pleads, but I can hear the edge hiding underneath.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m sure you do.” I hang up before he can say anything else, tossing the phone onto the bed with a sigh. He just wants to see if I’ll change my mind, but he has another thing coming if he thinks he’ll be the one to change it.
He’ll be here in twenty minutes, tops—no matter where he’s coming from. That’s just how he is. Persistent and predictable.
I glance at my reflection and groan. “Perfect,” I mumble to myself. Let’s see how bad I can make this day go before it’s even starts.
? ? ?
By the time the knock hits my door, it’s only been seventeen minutes. I roll my eyes, tossing the towel I’ve been using to dry my hair onto the bed. “Punctual as ever,” I mumble as I grab a loose tank top from the drawer, tug it over my head, and glance at myself again.
I don’t look as bad as I feel—but close enough. No point pretending otherwise.
Another knock, louder this time. Yup, it’s definitely Daniel.
“Yeah, yeah, hold on,” I call out, dragging my feet down the hall, already bracing myself for whatever version of him is waiting on the other side.
I open the door, and his blond hair is perfect as always, his blue eyes sharp but edged with exhaustion. His posture is tight, broadcasting frustration, yet there’s something softer buried under it—something he’s trying, but failing, to hide.
Is he… really sad right now?
“Wow,” I say, leaning against the doorframe. “Can’t even give me time to put on my apology outfit.”
He doesn’t smile—not even a twitch. “You could’ve called me last night.”
“I could’ve,” I say, sighing. “But I didn’t. I was tired. And honestly, I didn’t even know what I’d say.”
His jaw flexes, the muscle jumping hard, and he crosses his arms tight across his chest. “You walked out with that dude. At my parents’ house Jainey. You have any idea how that looked on me?”
“Yeah, I know exactly how it looked,” I reply, keeping my voice calm but firm. “And I’m not proud of it. But let’s not act like we didn’t have our own mess before last night.”
He tilts his head, eyes narrowing with that sharp mix of hurt and ego. “Our own mess? You mean when you ghosted me for weeks?”
I cross my arms too, mirroring him without meaning too. “Yeah. That mess.”
“Why, Jainey?” He asks, and his voice cracks just slightly—not enough for him to notice, but enough for me to hear it. “What did I do that was so bad you couldn’t even answer a damn text, let alone see me anymore?”
I look down, picking at a chipped edge of my nail, grounding myself before meeting his eyes again. “You literally told me you loved me,” I say, not bothering to soften it. “During sex, Daniel. That’s not exactly light conversation material.”
He blinks, the shock flickering across his blue eyes before he can hide it. “So you disappeared because I—”
“Because I don't know what to do with that,” I cut in. “Because I didn’t want to say something back just to fill the silence. You dropped a bomb in the middle of something that was supposed to be easy, and you expected me to just… what? Pretend it didn’t change anything?
I told you from the beginning what this was between us. ”
He runs a hand through his blonde hair, the movement frustrated and shaky all at once. “But I meant it, Jainey. I still do”
“I know,” I say softer then I mean to. “And that’s the problem.”
Neither of us moves, both of us stuck in the middle of the truth we didn’t ask for but can’t ignore.
“I just didn’t expect to see you with someone else,” he finally says, his voice dipping.
I shrug, though my chest feels tightens in that annoying, traitor way. “Yeah, well, I didn’t plan on seeing you the other night either. It just happened.”
He swallows, the pause stretching. “Can I please come in? I’m not here to argue. I just… want to talk.”
I hesitate, my eyes flicking to the clock, then back to his blue eyes, which don’t stop searching my face. “Fine. But if this turns into a lecture, I’m tuning you out.”
That gets the smallest smile—barely there, but enough to cut through the tension. “Noted.”
We head toward my room, he sits on the edge of my bed, his posture careful not to take up too much space. His gaze drifts slowly over everything—as if he’s cataloging it all, memorizing details he has no right to care about.
He’s only been here once, and I can tell he’s taking it in like it matters.
Closing the door behind us, I drop onto the bed beside him—close enough that our thighs touch. The air between us goes heavy, thick with everything we’ve avoided saying.
“I’m sorry about the other night… in the bathroom,” he starts, his voice low enough to skim down my spine. “You have no idea how hard it was for me to pull out of you and walk away like that—but that’s how much I want you.”
I blink, trying to process that logic. He wants me so much… he didn’t let me finish? What kind of reverse-psychology Jedi mind trick is that? My brain wants to argue, but I let him keep going, because stopping him feels like stepping into something I’m not ready to debate.
“I know when we first met, you said you only wanted sex,” he says, his blue eyes locked on mine, searching, almost pleading. “But I’m sorry, Jainey—I fell for you. And now you’re all I can think about.”
I take a slow breath, steadying myself because I was not expecting that.
“I’m sorry, Danny,” I start softly, my voice catching halfway through his name.
“And I know what I’m about to say is going to hurt, but…
I hope you can see the good in it too. My throat tightens.
“You’re amazing—honestly everything I used to wish for in a guy. But that’s exactly what scares me.”
I stare down at my hands, blinking fast as my voice trembles despite me trying to keep it together.
“I’ve got too much family baggage. Too much trauma all together.
I already had my fairytale ripped apart, and I’m not trying to hand you all the broken pieces.
You think I’m perfect for you, but I promise…
I’m not. You are someone’s soulmate’s, and she’s out there somewhere, waiting for you to sweep her off her feet. ”
The tears hit before I can stop them. Hot, sudden, and humiliating. I didn’t think I’d actually cry—I never cry in front of men other than my family. Ever. But saying that I’m too fucked up for someone who genuinely cares and wants me—cuts deeper than I ever thought it would.
I’ve never told a man he deserves better. Usually, I just take what I want, enjoy it, and leave when it no longer fits. But with Daniel… I can’t. I just can’t do that to him.
I feel like a rusted tin can, sharp and dented, and he’s the shiny new Coke bottle—clean, whole, and untouched. We don’t match.
He reaches for my hand slowly, afraid I’ll pull away. His thumb brushes over my skin in a soft, delicate sweep, memorizing the feel of me before he loses the right too.
“If this is goodbye,” he says quietly, “can we end it on a good note? I’d love to have you just one last time.”
A smile tugs at my lips. “I thought you’d never ask.”
I barely get the words out before his lips crash into mine—hungry and desperate, a goodbye masked as a kiss. His tongue explores mine with a fierceness that feels like both the first time and the last.
And this time… it is.