I could still hear Chuck behind me, his footsteps picking up as he tried to catch up. He kept talking, but every word out of his mouth made me want to scream. Each sentence was a fresh excuse, and it made me want to turn around and deck him. The worst part was, I wasn’t even sure if I was more pissed at him or myself.
“Mylo! Please—wait! You showed up early, okay? I was gonna tell you. We were never right for each other, you know that.” His voice was rushed, panicked. “I was just working up the nerve, I swear!”
I clenched my jaw, swallowing down the bitter laugh that almost bubbled up.
Oh, sure,the sarcastic little voice in my head chimed in,because that’s so much better, right? Wait until I’ve uprooted my entire fucking life just to dump me at the last minute. How bloody noble.
My hands curled into fists, my knuckles aching from how hard I was squeezing them. I wanted to turn around, to shout at him, punch him—anything to make the betrayal, that felt like my heart was being cut into pieces with dull scissors, hurt even a little bit less.
But what would be the point? Screaming at him wouldn’t change anything. It wouldn’t undo what was already done, and it certainly wouldn’t fix the giant hole in my chest.
Besides, it wouldn’t make it hurt any less that Chuck had made his choice—and it wasn’t me. So I was making mine. I wasn’t going to beg him or argue. I was walking away from it all, like I should’ve done months ago.
I wanted to say I was doing it with my dignity intact... but who the fuck was I kidding?
You deserve this,a voice mocked.
I knew better.
This was what happens when I break my own damn rule—one that had been drilled into me way too many times by life itself for me to have been so stupid. One I should know by heart already:You can’t depend on anyone, Mylo.
I’d learned that the hard way, over and over again. Not having a plan B, depending on Chuck, letting him in, and stupidly believing we could have something real—how could I have been so goddamn naïve? How could I have let myself believe in anything likeforeverorpermanentwith him?
People like me didn’t get permanent.
I picked up my pace, trying to outrun the hurt clawing at my insides. Chuck was still shouting behind me, but I blocked out the words, which was pretty easy with the pounding in my ears. My thoughts were a mess, everything felt loud, everything was so jumbled and all I wanted to do was scream.
When I got to Noah’s car, I yanked the door open with more force than necessary and got in without a word. The momentI closed it, I wished it was as easy to shut down my brain. The image of the omega with the bite... Chuck’s voice, throwing excuses around like they mattered... it all kept ringing in my head.
And maybe even worse—the silence inside the car felt like it would swallow me whole. It was heavy, like the weight of everything that had just happened was pressing down on me, squeezing the air from my lungs.
Noah didn’t say anything. But he didn’t have to.
He’d had a front-row seat to my humiliation from the driver’s seat, his eyes flicking between me and Chuck, who was probably still standing at the door, waiting—hoping—I’d open it.
For what fucking reason?
At least Noah looked as pissed off as I felt, but what nearly took me out was the concern—and maybe even pity—in his eyes. I could tell he wanted to say something, but Noah never pushed when I wasn’t ready. Just like he’d always done, he gave me space to breathe.
I buckled my seatbelt and looked straight ahead, my mind spinning. The only thought I could pin down was:This couldn’t be happening.
Chuck’s voice faded as we drove away. I wasn’t sure if I was happy not to hear the excuses anymore—or the begging for a second chance—or if I preferred the silence.
I stared out the window, watching the trees blur by, my stomach doing its best to tie itself in knots. Damn it, this wasn’t how it was supposed to go. I’d pictured this drive so differently. I was supposed to be in my new life—one I’d been working toward for months with Chuck, in a new place. A future where I finally had someone to lean on, someone I could depend on.
A home... a place no one could tell me to leave when they got sick of me.
But all of that had been smashed to pieces the moment I saw that omega at Chuck’s door, wearing his scent like a badge of honor.
The tears started before I could stop them. Hot, angry tears that blurred the world outside the window. I hated crying—especially in front of anyone, even Noah. But what the hell did I have left? Besides, if there was anyone I didn’t have to pretend for, it was him.
The one person who’d shown me there was light at the end of the very dark tunnel that was my life before he showed up. The one person who’d never let me down. If there was anyone I could fall apart in front of, it was him.
But damn it, I still hated it.
Noah glanced my way for a second before focusing back on the road. He was giving me space, like always. But after a while, his voice cut through the silence.
“Where do you want to go?”
