Anxiously, I wait for the three dots to appear on my screen, but nothing shows. Not even an indication that they read it. I don’t know if the lack of response means Maxime is out or just away from their phone, but I still send another message.
Luc: I’m coming to pick up my stuff at your place. I’ll be there in ten minutes. Please pretend like you were expecting me. I’ll explain later.
“How far is it?” Cody asks me once we exit the station.
“Not far, just ten minutes from here. But you don’t have to tag along.”
Cody turns to look at me. “I want to set things right with you, and I can’t do that when I don’t know where you are. You deserve better than what I did to you.”
I glare at him. “And what if I don’t want to make things right with you?”
His expression turns glum. “That’s your call. I’m just clinging to the hope that’s not the case.”
I let out a huff and don’t respond. Silence is easier than trying to untangle the mess my thoughts have become. I’ll stick to picking up my things from Maxime’s place, which I had to do at some point anyway, and see where I’ll go from there. I only hope Maxime is home.
Cody and I walk to Maxime’s apartment in silence, with me leading the way. I still have the key, so when we arrive, I unlock the front door to the building and push it open. At this point, I could easily have left Cody outside on the threshold, but the thought doesn’t even occur to me—I even hold the door open for him. What a weird time to be polite.
We take the elevator together to the fifth floor. In my head, I consider the possibilities. Maxime might not be home at all. Or perhaps they are, haven’t seen my messages, and will be surprised to see me. Their crush might already have arrived, and maybe I’ll be disturbing them. That’ll mean I’ll have no chance to hide inside, away from Cody. But honestly, at this point, I don’t even know if I want that anymore. Walking here with him in the fresh air has somewhat calmed my nerves, and even though I still have no idea what I’m in for, I no longer have the irresistible urge to flee.
When we stand in front of Maxime’s door, Cody flashes me a smile that’s meant to be encouraging, but it seems a little bit forced. I ring the doorbell, not wanting to use my key and invade Maxime’s privacy. After all, I technically don’t live here anymore.
Several seconds pass while we wait. I can hear muffled voices coming from inside, but other than that, nothing happens. No one opens the door, no one seems to approach the threshold, so I ring the bell again. That eventually does the trick.
Maxime opens the door, looking surprised, their gaze shifting between me and Cody. “What are you doing here?” they ask me, telling me they haven’t read my messages and unkowingly exposing the lie I told Cody. There’s nothing I can do about it now, though.
“I’m here to pick up my stuff. Can I come in?”
Maxime shakes their head. “No, I have company, I told you that. But luckily for you, I already packed your stuff. Hang on.” Maxime closes the door in my face, leaving me to guess whether they’ll actually come back. I give Cody a brief glance, half wondering if he’s mad at me because I lied about Maxime expecting me, but his expression is blank, and he stays quiet.
Not long after, the door opens again, and Maxime shoves two sports bags through the gap.
“Here you go. This should be everything; clothes, toiletries, and some cables I found.” I barely manage to take the bags from them when they add, “You can keep the bags. I have a bunch of them. Now, please leave. Like I said, I have company. I’ll text you later, okay?”
Before I can get another word in, Maxime’s already closing the door. The moment was brief and unexpected in several ways, not the way I had seen this happening. I came here thinking my stuff would still be in the same place I left it and that I would need to pack things into suitcases or bags. Not that I brought any of those with me. Come to think of it, that was probably a first indication for Cody that I was lying. Who goes to pack their stuff without bringing anything to put them in?
Well, at least I have my stuff back. I’m here, staring at Maxime’s door, with all my belongings already packed. That’s something.
I glance briefly at Cody and sigh softly as I place one of the bags on the ground. Grabbing its long handle, I let it dangle frommy shoulder. I keep the other one in my hand, holding it by the short handle.
Without another word, I start walking back to the elevator. I can feel Cody’s stare on me. I’ve felt it since the moment we left Maxime’s doorstep, almost like he’s waiting for me to say something. And not only that, but the weight of my blatant lie is starting to press down on me. “Okay, fine, so they weren’t exactly expecting me.”
Cody nods, unbothered. “I already guessed that on the train.” He points at the bag in my hand. “Do you want me to carry that?”
“No, I got it.”
Frustration edges into his voice. “Come on, Luc. Just hand me one. I’m not going anywhere.”
I glance at him, the man who’s been there for me since we met. Or at least, who was supposed to be. Maybe the very least I can do is let him help me carry my things. “Fine,” I mutter as I hand him the bag.
As we step into the elevator, Cody raises and lowers the bag slightly, testing its weight. “Did you give me the lighter one?”
“Yes. You’re an old man after all.”
Cody snorts softly. “You didn’t seem to mind that when I fucked you.”
My stomach does a strange thing. It swirls and sinks simultaneously, and I struggle to keep standing. I groan internally. Why did he have to say that? Right here, in this small, enclosed elevator space. In the past, I might have challenged him to remind me exactly how he fucked me again, or have him prove he can still keep up with me in bed. That would have been a fun game to play. But now... his words hit me like a bomb. They’re a reminder of what we have; not just the sex, but our connection, our banter. When he ends things with me, that will all be over, and I’ll miss it more than I could have expected.
Cody must have seen my shock because he quickly says, “I’m sorry. That just slipped out. It’s... I miss the way we talk.”
