36. Chapter 36
Ody walked back to the table like nothing had happened. Mano stayed behind at the buffet, fists still clenched, jaw tight.
“What happened, dude?” Steve asked as he and Ody returned to the table.
“Nothing, man.”
Anna leaned closer. “Baby, what was that? Why did Mano grab you like that?” she asked when Ody sat beside her.
“Everything’s fine. That’s just how Mano and I are. Nothing happened,” he said, trying to sound casual.
Ranya stood and walked over to Mano. “Babe, are you okay?” she asked.
His glare stayed locked on Ody, who had his back turned. He took his plate and moved to another table, away from everyone else.
Christina frowned. “Why’s he sitting alone?”
“Ody, what the hell did you say to him?” Antony asked, suddenly serious.
“Nothing guys, jeez,” Ody muttered. “Stop asking. Everything’s fine. Just eat so we can go to the beach.”
After breakfast, they went to their rooms to change. When they met outside again, Mano hadn’t said a word. His jaw was still tight, his mood unreadable.
As they walked toward the car, Ody unlocked it with the remote. He was about to get in when Mano stepped forward and snatched the keys out of his hand.
All three remained still as Mano opened the driver’s door and slid into the seat. Without looking at them, he buckled his seat belt, started the engine, and released the handbrake. They stood there staring.
“Are you getting in, or am I leaving without you?” he snapped and they climbed in quickly.
Mano shifted into first and hit the gas, quickly shifting to second, then third, his jaw locked.
Ody kept watching him from the passenger seat.
“Driving suits you,” Ranya said from the back.
Ody reached for the radio and turned it on, trying to cut the tension.
He entered the beach destination into the GPS and pointed at the screen to show Mano.
Mano shifted into fourth. Anna braced herself as the sudden acceleration pushed her against the seat. “Maybe slow down?” she asked.
“There’s no need to speed,” Ody added.
“Don’t talk,” Mano snapped, eyes fixed on the road.
They reached the beach first. Mano spotted a tall tree and sped toward it, braking hard as he parked in the shade.
He yanked the handbrake and tossed the keys onto Ody’s lap before getting out.
Anna and Ranya exchanged a look. They opened the trunk to grab their things, as Mano was already walking across the sand.
“Aren’t we waiting for everyone?” Ody called, but Mano didn’t even look back.
“I’ll go with him,” Ranya said quickly, grabbing her bag and hurrying after him.
Anna picked up the beach ball and frowned. “Babe, what happened? And don’t say nothing. He’s clearly pissed.”
Up ahead, Ranya called, “Mano, wait. I can’t run in flip-flops.”
“Who told you to follow me?” he snapped, turning.
She stared at him, taken aback. “Why are you talking to me like that?”
He let out a heavy breath, turned away, and kept walking.
“If you’re mad at Ody, don’t take it out on me!” she called after him, but he didn’t respond.
She stopped at the shore as Mano pulled off his shirt and headed straight into the sea.
“Wait. Aren’t you going to put on sunscreen?”
He ignored her and kept walking. A moment later, he dove into the sea and swam out farther.
“It’s really hot,” Christina said behind her as the rest of the group arrived.
“Let’s set up the umbrellas,” Antony said. “Where’s Mano?”
“He went in,” Ranya replied.
“Already?”
They started setting up their spot on the sand. Anna offered to put sunscreen on Ody, and he pulled off his shirt without answering. She rubbed it onto his shoulders and back, but before she finished, Ody stood up. “I’m going in.”
“Let’s all go together,” Steve called out.
“I’m boiling,” Ody said, heading toward the water. He stepped in slowly, letting it rise along his chest as he adjusted to the temperature. Then he ducked under.
He scanned the surface when he came up. No sign of Mano. Where the hell is he? He took a breath, dove again, and swam toward the rocks. When he surfaced this time, he finally spotted a head far out in the distance.
By the time he reached him, his breathing was heavy. “You got here fast,” he panted.
Mano swam right past him without a single word, but Ody reached out and grabbed his arm. The moment his fingers closed around Mano’s skin, he tensed like he’d been shocked.
“Come here.” Ody pulled him back, turning him until their faces were close enough that he could see the water clinging to Mano’s lashes.
Mano’s anger sharpened. “What do you want?” he jerked his arm back so violently that water splashed between them.
Ody flinched but held his ground. “Why are you acting like this?”
“Because you’re full of crap, that’s why.”
Ody blinked. “It offended you that much?”
Mano’s chest rose with a shallow breath. “The look on your face pisses me off even more.”
“What look?” Ody asked.
“Arrogant and full of mockery.”
“I’m not mocking you,” Ody said, brows pulling together.
Mano let out a humorless scoff, the muscles in his jaw tightening. “Oh no? Then what was that at the buffet? Talking about me eavesdropping, acting like my night was boring, and smirking like it was all a joke to you.”
Ody’s surprise was real this time. “Whoa, I didn’t think it’d bother you that much.”
Mano moved a little closer, water rippling between them with the motion. “You implied something with what you said. And you’re lucky I held back and didn’t punch you in the face.” His voice dropped lower, the anger in it burning instead of exploding.
His eyes were locked on Ody’s, and for a heartbeat, neither of them moved. Then Mano turned to swim away.
“Okay, I’m sorry,” Ody said quickly. His expression tightened as he reached out and grabbed his arm again. “I’m sorry. You’re right. It was out of line.”
Mano stopped. His shoulders tightened under Ody’s hand. “What’s gotten into you?” he asked, genuinely confused. “You weren’t like this. You’ve changed.”
“And you don’t like the change?” Ody asked.
Mano looked at him, bewildered. “I... I just don’t understand how it happened. Before Serifos, you were different.”
Guilt tightened Ody’s chest like a knot. Kash’s name pulsed through his mind, a reminder he couldn’t escape. “So you preferred me when I was tucking you in with a blanket?” He asked, swimming a little closer. “Or when I was feeding you? Or when I kissed you?”
Mano’s breath hitched. A faint blush warmed his cheeks, barely visible but impossible to miss this close.
“I can go back to that if you want,” Ody whispered as he drifted toward him, closing the last inches of space. “Do you want that?” He wrapped his arms around Mano’s nape, his legs moving beneath the water to keep himself afloat.
Their eyes locked. Ody leaned in, slow enough for Mano to stop him, but close enough that he could feel the warmth of Mano’s breath against his lips.
This is another one of his games. He just wants to throw a number at me. Mano shoved him back, water splashing hard between them. “I don’t want anything. Especially not from you.”
“That’s not what you said that night,” Ody said.
Mano went still. “What night?”
Ody’s gaze softened with memory. “When Kash hit you. When I told you I’d walk away if you wanted. You held my face, Mano.” His voice grew quieter. “You told me not to go.”
Mano blinked, the softness of that night flashing in his eyes before he could hide it. His jaw tightened and he looked away fast, heat rising up his neck. “I said something stupid. You took it seriously.”
“Oh, really…” Ody lifted an eyebrow.
“Yeah. Just like now,” Mano shot back, his words sharp enough to sting.
Ody’s expression shifted, frustration pushing through. “What’s happening now?”
“All this stuff you’ve been saying and doing since yesterday, it’s all crap to win your stupid little game.”
Ody stared at him. “You can’t seriously think that.”
“Why not?” Mano snapped. “You’re the one provoking me, smirking every time you walk away. You like messing with me, don’t you?”
Ody’s breath hitched, the accusation landing deeper than Mano probably meant it to. “That’s not why I’m doing it,” he said, softer now, eyes locked on Mano’s.
“Then why are you doing it?” Mano demanded, chest rising and falling faster, his face too close and too guarded at the same time.
The water swayed between them as Ody swallowed hard, his defenses collapsing in one instant. “Because I like you,” he said, the words tearing out of him before he could hold them back. The moment they left his mouth, he felt it, how true they were. How much of himself he had just exposed.
Mano’s eyes widened, lashes fluttering in shock, a flush rising across his cheeks as he blinked at Ody like he didn’t know how to breathe.
And that was when it hit Ody. His stomach dropped, pulse spiking.
He had a girlfriend. None of this was supposed to happen.
Panic lit up his whole body at once. Shame, fear, desire, guilt, all surging so fast he couldn’t think.
His hand trembled in the water. He tore his gaze away, heart pounding like he’d been hit.
He turned and swam away fast, almost desperate, water splashing around him as he tried to get distance between himself and the disaster he had just created.
“Ody, where are you, man?” Steve called out as Ody reached the shallows, the rest of the group trailing into the water behind him.
“The ball, you idiot,” Antony said, rolling his eyes.
“Oh... crap,” Steve muttered, realizing he’d left it on shore.
“I’ll get it guys,” Ody offered before anyone could argue, swimming back toward land.
Behind him, Mano stayed near the rocks, out of sight. Shoulders tense, he remained in the water, trying to process what he’d heard. Did Ody mean it? Or was it another twisted version of their game?
But what bothered him most was something he couldn’t shake. Where had Ody suddenly found all this confidence?
When Ody finally returned with the ball, the group fell into a game of water volleyball.
“Where’s Mano?” Ranya asked.
“Uh... I think he’s swimming,” Ody said, forcing steadiness into his voice as he hit the ball back.