10. Chapter 10
Mano’s eyes were fixed on Ody, his breathing still fast but no longer frantic. The worst of the episode had passed. He pushed himself off the floor, unsteady but upright. Ody rose with him, standing close enough to catch him if he wavered.
“You okay?” he asked, staying close.
Mano lifted his gaze for a brief second, then looked away and walked past him without answering.
“Wait.” Ody stepped in front of him, blocking his path. “What happened? Why did you react like that? Do you wanna talk about it?”
Mano brushed his hand off and walked away. Ody felt the rejection but didn’t push. Whatever had just happened, Mano was in no state to explain it.
Then he remembered. They had come together. In his car. He jogged to catch up. “Want me to drive you home?”
Mano didn’t respond. He just kept walking, jaw tight, shoulders tense.
“I won’t ask anything,” Ody said. “I promise.”
That made Mano stop. He turned, met Ody’s eyes, and after a moment, gave a small nod. They walked back together and got into the car.
Inside, Mano checked his phone. Eight missed calls from Stella. His face darkened.
“What is it?” Ody asked when he noticed.
Stella: So that’s how it is Mano. If you’re going to ignore me, I hope you like what you’re about to see
He tapped the notification. A picture filled his screen. Rage flashed across his features.
“What happened?” Ody glanced over, then looked back at the road.
The image showed Stella and Mano lying on white sheets. Mano’s chest was bare, eyes closed. Stella was smiling at the camera, one hand on his chest.
The caption read: Isn’t he adorable when he sleeps?
Mano slammed his fist into his thigh. Ody flinched at the sound and pulled over.
“I can’t believe her,” Mano said through clenched teeth. “She actually fucking posted this.”
Ody glanced at the screen, his expression changing as he saw the photo. “Why would she do that?”
“She threatened to. Said she’d post something if I didn’t go out with her.” Mano shut his eyes, furious.
“Wait, I thought you said you are going out with her.”
“I missed her calls. Now she’s punishing me.”
“Tell her to take it down.”
“Oh, she will take it down.” He opened his chat with Stella, anger boiling.
“Not like that,” Ody warned. “Don’t make it worse.”
“I’m not begging her.” He typed furiously. Take it down now or you’ll regret it
“Don’t send that,” Ody said. “Can I?”
Mano hesitated, then handed him the phone.
Ody deleted the message and typed something new. Why did you post that without asking me? That was private, I didn’t want anyone else to see it. He showed the screen. “Is this okay?”
“No! She’ll think I’m some kind of softie,” Mano snapped.
“Being polite is not being a softie,” Ody said, pressing send before Mano could argue.
He grabbed the phone back, furious. “What did you just do?”
“Relax. It’s just a message.”
“You don’t get it. She doesn’t respond to nice.”
The reply came quickly. If you were always this sweet to me, we would be perfect. This is how I want you to be my good boy. I’ll take it down
Mano stared in disbelief, his mouth falling open.
Ody exhaled in relief. “See? It worked.”
“Worked? She wants me to be her good boy. That’s humiliating!”
“What’s wrong with being a good guy?”
“You can be whatever you want. That’s not me,” Mano argued, eyes burning.
“You don’t seem as bad as you try to look,” Ody said gently.
Mano grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him close, their faces inches apart. His voice dropped, low and intense. “You haven’t seen anything.” Then he let go, ripped off his seat belt, and opened the door.
“Where are you going?” Ody asked.
“Wherever the fuck I want.” Mano slammed the door and walked off, anger radiating from him.
Saturday came. Ody went out with Anna, and Mano blew Stella off.
He fed her some excuses. Being rude would only provoke her, and after what she had already pulled, he wouldn’t risk more photos being posted online.
Thinking back to the first time he got tangled up with her made him regret it deeply.
If he could turn back time, he would’ve never said yes to her.
Stella: You sure you don’t wanna hang out today?
Mano: I have to practice guitar Stella. I can’t
Okay no big deal
Monday morning arrived. Mano rode his bike to campus and parked between two cars. After setting the kickstand, he took off his helmet and headed to the music room. There were no desks inside, only students scattered around with their instruments.
“Good morning. Grab your guitar,” the professor said.
Mano opened a tall drawer and took out his guitar.
“We’ll work on the first piece, then switch you to piano for the new one. Sounds good?”
“Yes.”
Two hours later, after practice, Mano walked back to the parking lot. As he approached his bike, something felt wrong. “No way,” he muttered, kneeling beside it.
Both tires were flat. Completely slashed.
The realization hit instantly. His face hardened. “Those bastards,” he growled, standing up as anger surged through him. Without hesitation, he stormed toward the pharmacy building.
“You know, when they say that twenty percent of the grade comes from the assignment, you just have to do it.”
“It’s extra credit, obviously,” Ody said, chatting with his friends as Mano approached from across the courtyard, his expression stormy. “Mano?”
“Where is he?” Mano snapped, striding straight toward them.
“Who?”
“Kash. And his buddies. They’re here, right?”
“They were. Why?”
“Where are they?” Mano tried to push past them.
“They left before class ended. What’s going on?” Ody asked, concern forming in his voice.
“They slashed my tires.”
“What?” Ody’s eyes widened.
“How do you know it was them?” Steve asked, but Mano only glared. Then Steve remembered. “Oh. Right. I forgot you beat the crap out of them.”
“Steve,” Ody hissed.
“What? No wonder they’re out for revenge,” Steve continued.
“By slashing my tires?” Mano barked. “If they do this to me, they can do it to someone else next.” His eyes flicked toward Ody.
“Why are you looking at Ody?” Chris asked.
“He knows why,” Mano said, then turned and walked off, leaving Ody uneasy.
What if they had messed with his car too?
“Why did he look at you like that?” Steve asked.
“I don’t know,” Ody lied.
Mano returned to the parking lot and crouched beside his bike, inspecting the damage. Two deep cuts ran across each tire.
“Mano,” a familiar voice called behind him. “Do you want a ride?”
He looked up at Ody approaching. “Did you check your tires first?”
“...No.”
“Go. And check your lights and brakes too.”
“They wouldn’t do something that extreme.”
“How naive are you?” Mano said, continuing his inspection.
Ody’s suspicion grew. He jogged back to his car and checked it thoroughly. A few minutes later he returned. “Everything is fine. I checked.”
“Fuck’s sake,” Mano muttered, kicking his damaged front tire before standing.
“You coming?” Ody asked.
Mano hesitated, then followed him to the car. They buckled their seat belts in silence.
Ody started the car and pulled onto the road. “Are you going to call roadside assistance?”
Mano sighed and stared out the window.
“I want to ask you for something,” Ody continued cautiously. Mano finally turned his head to look at him. “I don’t want you to keep this going. If you do something to them, they’ll retaliate again. It’ll never stop.”
“Ody, this is none of your business, alright?” Mano said. “This whole thing started because of you, and now they’ve targeted me.”
“Well, you’re the one who fought them.”
“Because they hit you. We’ve gone over this.” Mano’s jaw clenched, the words coming out sharper than before.
“Can you just let it go? It will not—”
“No. I can’t.” Mano cut him off, his voice rising. “Do you know how much those tires cost? Both of them are slashed. They’ll get what they deserve.”
“What if they do something worse? What if they hurt you?” Ody asked as they stopped at a red light.
Mano let out a short laugh. “So you’re worried about me now?”
“Yes, I am worried.”
Mano’s smile slowly faded.
Their gazes locked. For a moment, neither of them spoke.
“I don’t want them to hurt you,” Ody continued. “They punched me three times, and it hurt. What if they do worse? What if they—”
“Cut it out, mikre,” Mano said. “I’m not gonna put you in danger, so you don’t need to worry.”
“I’m not worried about me,” Ody said, his voice firm. “I’m worried about you.” Their gazes stayed locked until a car horn jolted Ody. He turned back to the wheel and drove the rest of the way in silence. They soon pulled up in front of Mano’s building.
“Did your friends notice anything?” Mano asked.
“No.”
“Sorry for letting it slip earlier,” Mano muttered, avoiding eye contact.
“It’s okay.” Ody gave him a faint smile.
Mano opened the door. “See you.”
Ody watched him walk inside before driving away.
Later that afternoon, Mano’s phone buzzed.
Stella: Wanna go out tonight babe?
Mano exhaled through his nose and typed. I’m not in the mood
His phone buzzed again almost immediately. Don’t blow me off again Mano. I’m serious
His jaw tightened. Someone slashed my bike tires. I’m not in the mood to go out
Omg why? Don’t tell me you got into a fight
Mano stared at the screen for a second, then typed. Leave me alone
The three dots appeared again. Come on baby. We don’t have to go downtown. At least come out for a little while. You don’t want to?
He rubbed a hand over his face. Do you want me to be honest?
I won’t annoy you today. You’ll see. We can go wherever you want. Just for a little while
He hesitated, thumb hovering over the screen. Where do you want to meet?
At the park at nine
He let out a quiet breath. Okay. I’ll wait for you at the first bench
He planned to talk to her. To end things once and for all. He was tired of the threats, the manipulation, the games. He needed her to hear it from him directly, without messages twisting his words. If he didn’t settle this face-to-face, she’d keep pushing her way back into his life.
He showered, dressed in gray sweatpants and a black compression shirt, and left the apartment. The warm May air brushed against his skin as he walked.
He put his earbuds in and made his way to the park. The first bench was empty, so he sat and waited, his music still playing.
Minutes ticked by. No sign of Stella. He took out his phone to message her, when a shadow moved behind him. Before he could react, a violent blow to the back of his skull sent him crashing into darkness.
“Hurry up,” a voice hissed. “Check if anyone is coming.” Hands grabbed him, dragging him away.
When consciousness crept back, pain exploded through his skull. He groaned and touched the tender spot. Cold stone pressed against his back. He sat up slowly and blinked. Six guys stood in front of him. Three familiar faces. Two gripping bats.
“Good morning, sunshine,” Kash said from the middle of the group.
Mano scanned their faces with narrowed eyes. He’d been cornered like this before. It hadn’t ended well.
“Nice bike you have. Shame about the tires,” Kash mocked.
Mano chuckled under his breath and slowly pushed himself to his feet.
“Did I say something funny?” Kash snarled.
Mano met his eyes. “I see you brought the whole crew. Smart. You know I can handle the three of you with a single punch.”
Hostility rippled through the group. Only then did Mano notice where he was. A deserted schoolyard. His thoughts snapped to Stella. “What did you do to her?”
“Who?” Kash tilted his head.
“Stella.”
“I don’t know any Stella. Do you guys know a Stella?” he asked, and the others shook their heads.
It made no sense. She was supposed to meet him. How did they know where he’d be?
“Don’t stress yourself,” Kash said. “Let me help.” He took out a phone and read aloud. “Someone slashed my bike tires. I’m not in the mood to go out. Don’t tell me you got into a fight. I’ll wait for you at the first bench.” He lifted his head with a sly grin.
Mano’s eyes widened. He recognized the phone instantly. “That’s Stella’s phone.”
“Bingo.”
“Why do you have it?”
Kash stepped closer, his dark eyes locking onto Mano’s. “I thought you were smarter than this. You still don’t get it?”
Mano searched his memory, trying to piece together the connection.
Kash smirked and waited.
Mano’s face shifted in shock as the realization finally hit him.
“Oh yeah, you remember now.” Kash leaned in, voice dripping with satisfaction. “I’m the jealous ex.”