Dear Roommate Please Stop Being Hot [BL]-Chapter 93: What Love Feels Like

The dorm had settled into a soft, quiet hum — that in-between state where time felt slower, like even the walls had taken a breath.

They were still on the bed.

Sunlight cut diagonally through the blinds, casting golden slats across Luca’s bare arm, across Noel’s cheekbone as he shifted against the sheets.

For a while, they just lay there — not asleep, not fully talking, just existing. Close enough to feel one another breathe.

But eventually, Noel stirred.

He sat up slowly, brushing a hand through his hair, and reached for his laptop on the desk. "I’ve got one assignment I didn’t finish," he murmured, voice still husky with sleep. "Might as well knock it out while I’m motivated."

Luca just made a soft sound of acknowledgment and rolled onto his back, phone in hand.

Noel padded over to his chair, pulling it out carefully before settling in. The keys clacked lightly, his concentration focused but relaxed, like the calm after a storm.

On the bed, Luca unlocked his phone and opened his chat with Jordan.

Jordan:

yo so what happened? you good now??

dormworld war over or still cold war?

Luca huffed a quiet laugh through his nose, thumbs hovering for a moment before replying.

Luca:

we talked

finally

Jordan:

👀 and???

Luca:

we’re okay now. more than okay actually.

There was a pause.

Then Jordan replied:

Jordan:

lol wow that’s kinda fast. he’s really got you huh?

i mean i never saw you like this since... you know.

Luca exhaled, thumb resting on the screen.

His smile was faint — almost self-conscious.

Luca:

yeah. he’s different.

feels real.

Behind him, the soft clicking of Noel’s keyboard continued, steady and comforting.

Luca looked up from the screen for a moment, eyes resting on the shape of Noel in the sunlight, brow furrowed as he typed. The faintest smile tugged at Luca’s lips again.

He wasn’t the kind of guy who rushed things. But this?

This wasn’t rushing.

It was right.

He turned back to his phone and added one more message.

Luca:

thanks for last night btw

i know i was a mess.

Jordan:

bro. you’re always a mess. just glad you finally found someone who doesn’t mind cleaning up after you.

Luca laughed under his breath, shaking his head.

"Noel," he called out lazily, still looking at his phone.

"Yeah?" Noel didn’t look up from the screen.

Luca smirked. "Jordan says you’re brave for dating me."

Noel paused mid-sentence.

Then without turning, he replied flatly, "He’s not wrong."

Luca’s laughter echoed through the room — easy, bright, and real.

The soft rustling of pages and the gentle clack of keys filled the room, interrupted only by the occasional buzz of a notification on Luca’s phone.

He hadn’t been paying them much attention.

Until this one.

Kian. Again.

A single new message sat on his screen.

Kian:

"Can we talk? One last time. I promise it’s not to start anything."

Luca stared at it.

His stomach knotted—not with temptation, not anymore. But with the weight of unfinished things. Of a Chapter that had stayed cracked open, half-read and gathering dust.

He sat up a little straighter.

Across the room, Noel was still focused on his laptop, legs folded under him, lips pursed in thought. The sunlight hit his face just right, turning his lashes gold.

Luca hesitated.

Then:

"Noel?"

Noel glanced up, brows softening when he saw the shift in Luca’s face. "Yeah?"

Luca licked his lips. "There’s... something I need to do."

Noel’s posture tensed just slightly—not fear, but instinct. He didn’t speak, waiting.

"I got a message," Luca continued. "From Kian. He wants to meet. One last time."

A long pause.

Noel set his laptop aside, giving him his full attention now.

"I’m not going because I miss him," Luca said, voice steady. "I’m not confused. I’m not second-guessing anything. I just... I want to end it clean. No echoes."

Noel’s throat bobbed with a quiet swallow.

"I need to go," Luca finished. "And I want you to know it’s not to change anything between us. But only to let go—not of us, just of what’s behind me."

The silence stretched for another beat.

Then Noel nodded once. "Okay."

Luca blinked. "Okay?"

"I trust you," Noel said, voice quiet. "I don’t love the idea. But... I get it."

A small breath escaped Luca’s lips. "Thank you."

Noel gave a faint, wry smile. "Just don’t be gone long."

Luca grinned, softer. "I won’t."

The café was quieter than usual — between rushes, before the lunch crowd.

Kian was already there.

Same table he used to love. The one by the window. A half-empty espresso sat in front of him, his jacket draped over the chair beside him. He didn’t look up right away.

Luca approached slowly, hands in the pockets of his hoodie.

When he reached the table, Kian looked up.

He didn’t smile. But something passed across his face—recognition, nostalgia, maybe even the faintest flicker of hope.

"You came," he said.

Luca didn’t sit yet. "Yeah."

"Wasn’t sure if you would." Kian leaned back in his seat, eyeing him. "You look... different."

"I am," Luca replied.

A small silence fell between them.

Kian finally gestured to the seat. "You gonna sit or stand like a stranger?"

Luca sat.

Briefly.

Kian studied him—more guarded now. "So... how’s dorm life?"

"It’s good," Luca said.

"That guy... Noel, right?"

Luca didn’t blink. "Yeah."

Kian looked away, then back. "He doesn’t look your type."

"He’s exactly my type," Luca said, calm and without apology.

Kian exhaled, something tightening in his jaw. "So this is it, huh?"

"It was already it a long time ago," Luca said gently. "We just never said it out loud."

Kian’s voice dropped. "I thought you’d come back eventually."

"I used to think that too," Luca admitted. "But I don’t anymore."

Kian stared at the table. "I wasn’t always the best to you."

"No," Luca said. "But you weren’t always the worst, either."

That seemed to sting even more.

Luca let the silence sit for a second before standing again. "I didn’t come here to fight, or to fix anything."

"Then why?"

"To tell you goodbye," Luca said, eyes steady. "And mean it this time."

Kian looked up. "And if I told you I still—"

"You don’t," Luca said gently. "You miss what we were. Not me. And that’s okay."

He gave a small nod. "Take care of yourself, Kian."

Luca turned.

And walked away.

Kian stood still watching until Luca disappeared.

The room was quiet.

Too quiet.

Noel sat at his desk, the soft afternoon sun casting amber light across the floor, but his laptop was shut, untouched for the last hour. His fingers rested lightly on the edge of the table, unmoving.

He hadn’t done anything since Luca left.

Not really.

Not even scrolled.

His eyes kept drifting to the door, the one he couldn’t seem to stop watching.

His thoughts spiraled softly — not in panic, not anymore. But in something deeper, weightier.

"What if that goodbye wakes something up again?"

"What if he looks into Kian’s eyes and forgets how far we’ve come?"

"What if..."

He closed his eyes, pressing his fingers gently into his temples.

Then, softer still — the one thought that scared him most:

"What if I was just... the safer choice? The placeholder until his past called louder than I could ever whisper?"

But then he remembered the way Luca looked at him that morning. The way he wrapped himself around him like he’d been holding back for years. The way he stayed.

He chose me.

Noel exhaled, eyes fluttering open.

And just then—

The door clicked.

A creak followed, quiet but unmistakable.

Noel turned in his chair, breath catching.

There he was.

Luca.

He stood still for a beat, their eyes locking in that suspended second that felt like everything inside Noel’s chest finally let go. freёnovelkiss.com

Noel stood up.

He didn’t rush — just moved toward him, steady and slow, like he didn’t want to break the moment with suddenness.

Luca stepped forward, too.

And then—

They met in the middle.

Luca’s arms circled him first, slipping around his waist, drawing him in close.

Noel closed his eyes, arms curling tightly around Luca’s shoulders like he never wanted to let go.

His fingers clutched the fabric of Luca’s hoodie, grounding himself in the scent, the warmth, the reality of him.

Luca’s chin rested against Noel’s shoulder, and he whispered into the space between them:

"I told him goodbye."

A pause. Then even softer:

"And I meant it."

Noel’s arms tightened.

Luca leaned back just enough to look at him, their foreheads almost touching.

"I’m yours now," he said, his voice steady. "No more shadows. No more looking back."

Noel’s hands cupped his face, thumb grazing over the sharp line of Luca’s cheek.

He didn’t need to ask if he meant it.

He already knew.

"I know," he whispered back.

And this time, when their lips met — it wasn’t rushed or desperate.

It was home.

The Kiss Deepens.

At first, it was just their mouths pressed together — lips meeting softly, slowly, like they were still finding the shape of each other.

But then something shifted.

Noel’s hand slipped into Luca’s hair, fingers tangling there as he leaned in deeper, parting Luca’s lips with his own.

Their breaths mixed — warm, uneven, caught between sighs and heartbeats.

Luca let out the softest sound in his throat, something between surprise and surrender, and Noel felt it like a current in his chest.

He kissed him again, slower this time, savoring the way Luca melted into him.

When they broke for air, they didn’t move far — foreheads resting together, eyes half-lidded, arms wrapped so tightly around each other it felt like their bodies didn’t know how to be apart anymore.

Breathless.

Shaking.

Home.

Then—gently—Noel turned them, pressing Luca back against the wall, the quiet thud swallowed by their shared silence. He held him there, just looked at him for a second.

Eyes searching.

Luca blinked up, cheeks flushed, lips kissed pink and parted just slightly.

"I love you," Noel whispered — though maybe he didn’t even mean to say it out loud.

But Luca heard.

And he didn’t flinch.

Instead, he leaned forward and kissed him again — slow and certain.

Noel’s hands moved down, finding the hem of Luca’s jacket, then slipping beneath the soft fabric.

He started to unbutton it — carefully, deliberately — but paused halfway through, looking up into Luca’s eyes.

No need to ask.

Everything was already written there.

Luca gave the faintest nod, and Noel leaned in again, kissing the corner of his mouth, his jawline, the hollow beneath his ear.

They moved together — quiet and wordless — across the room.

By the time they reached the bed, Noel had finished undoing the jacket, sliding it off Luca’s shoulders like it was made of something sacred. He helped him lie back gently, like laying down a piece of his own heart.

Noel tugged his own shirt over his head, breath shallow, gaze never leaving Luca’s.

The air shifted — warmer, sweeter, full of something neither of them could name but both understood.

Noel leaned down, placing a kiss on Luca’s collarbone.

Then another — along the line of his chest.

Then lower.

His lips left a slow, reverent trail over skin — not rushed, not greedy, just present.

Luca’s breath hitched, one hand sliding along Noel’s back, fingertips trembling slightly against warm skin.

His eyes fluttered shut.

He breathed out Noel’s name, not loud — like a prayer, like something meant only for this room, this hour, this love.

Soft moans escaped between kisses — delicate, as if even pleasure here knew to be gentle.

Noel kissed the edge of Luca’s ribs, the slope of his shoulder, every inch with care like he was learning a language only Luca spoke.

And Luca let him.

Noel whispered between the spaces, "You’re safe with me."

Luca’s hand found his face, pulled him back up.

Their lips met again, deeper now — as if every ache and every almost had led to this exact second.

Time fell away.

And nothing existed beyond the heat of their bodies, the softness of breath between kisses, and the overwhelming, soul-deep ache of finally being seen — and chosen.

Later.

The dorm was quiet again, but not empty.

Somewhere beneath the messy covers, wrapped around each other like they’d always belonged this way, Noel and Luca lay tangled, not in need but in knowing—soft and settled in the kind of quiet that only comes after being fully seen.

Peace.

Noel rested on his side, arm draped across Luca’s waist, fingertips tracing lazy circles against bare skin.

His breathing had slowed, steady and even, but he hadn’t closed his eyes. Not yet. He was still watching Luca — like if he blinked too long, it might disappear.

Luca blinked slowly up at the ceiling, one arm tucked under his head, the other gently brushing through Noel’s hair.

"You’re staring," he whispered, lips tugging into a soft smile.

Noel didn’t look away. "I know."

Luca turned his head, meeting his gaze.

"Why?"

Noel hesitated for a moment, like he was searching for words he hadn’t ever spoken aloud before.

"Because," he said, voice quiet, "I never thought something could feel this right and still be real."

Luca exhaled — not a laugh, not quite — just a breath full of something raw and full. He leaned in and brushed his nose against Noel’s.

"It’s real," he murmured. "And it’s ours."

Their lips met again — softer now, like kissing was just a habit they couldn’t shake. A good one. A favorite.

When they pulled apart, Noel buried his face against Luca’s chest, and Luca’s arms tightened around him.

They didn’t talk for a while.

The silence wasn’t hollow. It was heavy with all they’d just said—without needing to say it again.

Eventually, Luca whispered into Noel’s hair, "Still think you’re boring?"

Noel let out a small laugh. "Maybe. But apparently I’m your type."

"Unfortunately," Luca teased, pressing a kiss to the top of his head. "I’m completely ruined for anyone else."

Noel tilted his head to look up at him. "Good."

Luca laughed under his breath.

Their fingers intertwined. The soft sheets rustled as they shifted closer, like even now — with no more distance left to close — they still couldn’t get close enough.

Noel whispered, "Thank you... for coming back."

Luca didn’t answer right away. He just kissed the top of Noel’s shoulder and said, "I walked away from the past... because this—you—was always where I was meant to arrive."

And there, with sunlight slipping through the curtains and hearts finally steady, they let the rest of the world wait.

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