He felt… lighter. Like he’d taken back a piece of himself he didn’t even realize he’d been missing.
Amelia clapped when he stepped out. “You look amazing. Seriously.”
Adrik rolled his eyes but couldn’t help smiling. “Thanks.”
Amelia accompanied him to the corner near the train stop. “I have a class in ten minutes,” she said, waving. “Text me if you faint or something.”
“I’m not going to faint.”
“Still. Text me.”
She jogged toward campus, her scarf trailing behind her.
Adrik stood alone for a moment; the new piercings throbbing with a warm, steady pulse. A strange sense of pride swelled within him. Independent. Like he’d retrieved a part of himself that belonged only to him.
He boarded the train, found a seat beside the window, and leaned against the cold glass as the city blurred past.
Maybe Hans was still thinking about him—fine. But Adrik had other things on his mind now, like the thrill of doing whatever the hell he wanted, maybe even getting a tattoo, and heading to Seebrise tonight without answering to anyone.
Chapter Nineteen
Hans
Hans wrapped up hislast class of the day and retreated to his office, the small, slightly cramped room tucked at the end of the language department hallway. The place always smelled faintly of old books and stale coffee. Shelves lined the walls, stuffed with German novels, English grammar texts, and stacks of student essays he kept meaning to grade. His desk was a battlefield of sticky notes, coffee mugs, and half-organized lesson plans.
Amelia sat across from him, perched on the edge of the visitor chair, flipping through a stack of translation exercises. She was efficient, bright, and far too observant of his comfort sometimes.
Hans leaned back in his chair. “Did you really take Adrik to get his nipples pierced?”
Amelia didn’t even blink. “Yes. They look so sexy on him.”
Hans’ fingers tightened around the edge of his desk. “Really? He let you see them?”
She gave him a look as if he’d asked whether water was wet. “Of course. I was with him when he got them pierced.”
Hans swallowed, forcing a tight smile. “Right. Well… thank you for helping the students with their translations today.”
“Anytime, Hans,” she said, gathering her things before heading out.
After Amelia left, the office fell quiet in a heavy, suffocating way Hans hated. Too still. Too full of his own thoughts. And every single one of them was about Adrik.
He paced behind his desk, jaw tight, replaying her words. “They look so sexy on him.”
Sexy. On him.
She said it like it was no big deal, while he was left trying to pretend it didn’t punch a hole straight through his mood.
Hans lifted the nearest stack of books and slammed them onto the desk. One slid off and hit the floor with a loud thud. He didn’t pick it up. Instead, he picked up the digital clock on his desk and tossed it onto the chair. Then he threw all his pens everywhere. The sound echoed off the walls, sharp and satisfying.
“Unbelievable,” he muttered. “Absolutely unbelievable.”
Adrik—quiet, intense, guarded Adrik—had gone and gotten his nipples pierced. With Amelia. Amelia, who was supposed to be helping him, not escorting the man he was trying very hard not to think about to a piercing shop.
Pacing. Hair shoved back. Breath too tight.
Adrik in the doorway—that’s all it would take. One look. One second. And the words would rip out of him.
Oh, sure. Show her everything.
