Kash’s chest tightened. He looked away, jaw clenching. He hated the truth.
Ody nodded slowly, biting his lip. “I honestly have nothing else to say to you. Just go.”
Kash’s eyes searched his face, hoping for a crack, a softness, anything. There was nothing.
Ody turned away from him. “Come on, Kash. Leave.” His tone was calm, but empty, stripped bare of patience.
Kash swallowed and walked toward the door. He placed his hand on the handle, but Ody stopped him. “You promised you wouldn’t hurt Mano again.” It came out like a warning, almost like he needed to hear it again. He was afraid that once Kash walked out, that promise would vanish with him.
“I won’t. I gave you my word.”
Ody studied him closely, searching for even the smallest lie. Then he nodded once, slow and thoughtful.
Kash watched him, hoping that meant something. It didn’t.
He opened the door and stepped outside.
Ody didn’t say another word.
The door clicked shut between them.
Chapter 32
The following afternoon, Ody went out for a drink with Anna. Most of their conversation drifted back to the holiday trip getting closer. Anna was glowing, excited about finally going away with such a big group of friends.
Later that night, they went back to Ody’s place together. She kissed him first, the dim lights turning everything warm around them.
And still, after two years of kissing her without a single doubt in his mind, Mano flashed through his thoughts. And Kash, whose lips had been on his chest.
Anna pushed him onto the couch, her fingers slipping toward his zipper. Later, lying side by side, he tried to make sense of what he’d felt while making love to his girlfriend. He liked it. He wanted it. There was nothing wrong with any of it, and yet the guilt lingered anyway.
For a moment, he thought about talking to her. He turned toward Anna, the words almost forming. But what could hepossibly say? That he was confused? That he couldn’t stop thinking about Mano? That he had let Kash kiss him?
The thoughts tangled in his mind until none of them made sense anymore. In the end, he said nothing.
Anna prepared something to eat while Ody checked his phone. A message from Steve came in about a basketball game on Thursday, and Ody replied that he would invite Mano. After they finished eating, Ody relaxed with Anna in his arms, and the two of them fell asleep on the couch.
The next day, he headed to campus for his exam. Steve and Chris met him at the main hall, and the three of them walked together toward the canteen.
As they moved through the corridor, they crossed paths with Kash and his group. Brandon slipped into an exaggerated tough-guy strut, mimicking a bodyguard beside Pablo, clearly making fun of how glued Steve and Chris were to Ody. Pablo chuckled as they passed, and Steve tensed beside Ody.
“Got a problem, guys?” he snapped.
Ody grabbed his arm, silently telling him to let it go, but the other three had already turned.
“I’ve got a question, Ody,” Brandon said. “Do you pay these guys to be your bodyguards, or do they do it for free?” He smirked, right before Steve lunged.
Chris and Ody held him back, while Brandon and Pablo burst out laughing. Ody turned his glare on Kash, anger burning in his eyes.
“If you think you’re tough, then start something.” Steve challenged, stepping toward Brandon. “Let’s see who really needs a bodyguard then.”
“Steve!” Ody pulled him back.
Pablo sneered. “I think Kash already told you. We’ve got more people than you. You wanna go right now? See who comes out on top?”
Kash stepped forward before anyone else could speak, slipping right back into the role he always played around his friends. “You really think that just because you ambushed us last time, we’re gonna back down? Don’t test us.” As he said it, he met Ody’s eyes for a split second. The others didn’t notice, but both of them knew exactly what that look meant.
“Guys, leave it,” Ody said, jaw tight as he pulled Steve away. Steve kept shooting hostile looks over his shoulder.
