“Damn it…”Focus!“Resulting in both chronic and acute changes in the reinforcement of arterial pressure—”
“Putting someone else above yourself might be the truest definition of bravery.”
He grabbed the textbook and threw it against the wall. Then he slumped over the table, burying his head in his arms. He could stare at the page all day. His brain wouldn’t absorb a thing, not until they talked.
Meanwhile, Mano woke up on his own at 11:30 a.m., Ody’s kiss the first thing that came to mind. He made something to eat, picked up his guitar, and practiced for a while. A notification eventually broke his rhythm.
Odysseus: I’m sorry about yesterday... Can we talk?
He read it from the notification bar, set the phone aside, and kept playing. The melody was smooth and rhythmic. But as he played, the memory of Ody’s lips brushing his own rose up without warning, warm and disorienting.
His fingers faltered. A wrong note snapped the flow. “Goddamn it.” He set the guitar down hard and headed to the bathroom. He stood under the cold water, his body tensing at the shock.
Ody’s phone buzzed nonstop in the group chat. Steve couldn’t stop talking about Danae, Chris celebrated submitting his paper two minutes before the deadline, and the usual teasing bounced back and forth between them.
Ody answered out of habit, but every reply felt delayed and half-formed. Even his friends noticed he was off, asking why he was so quiet. He blamed the exams, but the truth was obvious. His mind wasn’t with them at all.
Mano stepped out of the cold shower, wrapped a towel around his waist, grabbed his phone, and lay on the bed staring at the ceiling. The memory of Ody’s lips kept replaying in hismind, sharper each time, refusing to fade no matter how hard he tried to push it away.
He needed a distraction, something to shut his head up. Before he could think it through, he typed a message to Ranya, asking if she was free. Her reply came almost instantly, and he told her to come by his place.
Later that night, Mano answered the door. Ranya stood on the threshold in a fitted black dress, her expression already daring him, as if reminding him she liked things rough. The moment he saw her, the intention in her eyes snapped him back into the role he knew she expected.
“Hey,” she said, but Mano grabbed her by the waist and pressed his mouth to her neck.
He pushed her onto the couch, his hands already gathering the fabric of her dress, as he yanked it up along her hips. He hooked his fingers into the thin lace of her underwear, felt it stretch for a second, then ripped it in a single hard pull.
“Are you crazy?” she gasped, eyes wide before her expression shifted. The shock melted into something darker as the torn lace brushed her thigh.
“I’ll buy you a new one. Shut up.” He licked his fingers and slid them into her, her moan sharp and immediate.
His eyes flicked down for a moment, taking in how fast she responded. “So wet for me already,” he said, his voice low. “Good girl.”
She moaned, her back arching as his grip tightened on her hips. The shift in her breathing told him everything he needed to know. Mano felt a pull in his chest, a mix of control and distraction he’d been chasing ever since the kiss that ruined his morning.
“Such a pretty expression you’ve got there,” he said, his tone almost amused as he watched her react exactly the way he wanted.
Her fingers curled into the cushions. She tilted her head, offering him more. Mano’s mouth curved, dark and satisfied. She yielded fast. He barely had to push.
A moment later he caught her wrists, guiding them above her head. His hand flicked toward the side table, where he’d left what he needed. The hesitation in her eyes flickered only for a second before she let him, her gaze steady on his.
“That’s better,” he said, fastening the cuffs around her wrists with practiced ease. “Now you’re exactly where you should be.”
Her breath trembled. “I’m… I shouldn’t have talked back earlier,” she whispered, the words coming out uneven. “I know.”
Mano’s gaze sharpened. That was what he expected. What he needed from her tonight. “Then behave. And maybe I’ll forgive you.”
She nodded, and the tension between them sharpened into something charged. Exactly the distraction he’d been looking for to silence the memory of another set of lips.
Meanwhile, Ody met his two best friends at a café, doing his best to stay present. They bumped fists in greeting, and Steve launched into a story about Danae.
“Man, you’re living the dream. Ody’s been in a relationship for two years, you found a girlfriend, and I’m still the lonely loser,” Chris said dryly.
“That’s why we gave you that nickname in the group chat,” Steve laughed, getting a jab to the arm.
They were halfway through their drinks when they noticed Ody zoning out, his gaze fixed somewhere far away.
“Hey.” Steve nudged him under the table. “Where’s your head at?”
