My Stepbrother, My Enemy {BL}-Chapter 129: His Hidden Protector

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For a few moments, I just stared at the name on the page, almost like it was glowing. My heart raced, and my mind was already racing ahead, imagining all the things Rachel might share with us, picturing who L.S. really was, and pondering why Joanne had ended up dead. It felt like the ground had shifted beneath me.

"We could go there now," Adrien suddenly suggested.

I snapped my head up. "Now?"

He shrugged, but his casual demeanor didn’t match the intensity in his eyes, which were sharp and almost eager for answers. "Yeah. She’s only thirty minutes away. If we leave now, we’ll be there before dinner."

And deep down, a part of me kind of wanted to agree. I was buzzing with adrenaline. This whole investigation had been filled with dead ends and shadows, and suddenly we had something concrete. Something tangible.

But just as I was about to say, ’let’s go,’ reality hit me hard.

Jace’s party.

The whole annoying drama of being invited.

I froze mid-breath.

"Oh," I winced. "Crap. I...I can’t tonight."

Adrien’s eyebrows shot up. "Why not?"

"I was invited to Jace’s party," I said reluctantly, the words sounding ridiculous as they slipped out.

He stared at me, blinking in disbelief. "What do you mean you’re invited?"

"I got an invite," I said, crossing my arms defensively.

He looked genuinely thrown, as if I’d just told him I was off to join a cult. "You—what? Since when do they invite you?"

I laughed sharply. "Wow, thanks. You really make it sound like I’m such a unwanted biohazard."

He scowled. "That’s not what I meant, hamster."

"What did you mean, then?" I shot back, raising my eyebrow. "That it’s surprising for someone like me to be invited because I’m...what, some loser like you always say I am?"

Adrien rolled his eyes so dramatically it looked painful. "Seriously? You love the drama. All I’m saying is I didn’t know about it. I just didn’t think they’d actually include you. They’re my friends, so I knows they’re jerks, okay? They haven’t been your biggest fans."

"That’s putting it mildly," I muttered.

He ran a hand through his hair, still looking confused, like he was piecing together a puzzle that didn’t make sense. "Why would they invite you?"

"That’s what I’m trying to figure out," I sighed. "So I’m going. And you and I—" I tapped the phone book lightly with my fingertips, "we’ll go find Rachel tomorrow. Sunday morning."

Adrien hesitated but nodded slowly. "Fine, tomorrow then."

I turned to leave, pushing open his door, but he called out just as I stepped into the hallway.

"Noah."

I paused.

When I looked back at him, he wasn’t smirking or angry or mocking. He looked... worried. Like he was replaying a memory he wanted to forget. Probably the pool incident.

"Just, be careful tonight," he said quietly. "Those guys aren’t exactly predictable."

Something fluttered in my chest, but I ignored it. "I’ll be fine," I replied, trying to sound nonchalant. "I’m not as stupid as I was last semester."

His jaw tightened a bit, and I couldn’t tell if he was offended for me or just annoyed that I mentioned it. Maybe a bit of both.

"You were never stupid," he muttered under his breath.

I pretended I didn’t hear that.

"See you tomorrow," I said instead. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Without waiting for his response—because suddenly his room felt too warm and his gaze too intense, I left and closed my door behind me, hoping my racing heart would settle before I had to figure out what to wear for whatever disaster this party was going to be.

3rd Person POV

Adrien sat down on the edge of his bed the moment Noah’s door clicked shut. The room felt oddly quiet without his voice bouncing around, like the air itself had shifted when Noah left. Adrien leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees, fingers rubbing the back of his neck in a slow, restless motion.

He could still hear Noah’s voice echoing in the hallway, soft yet firm, forgiving without even trying.

Helen used to say that about Noah to his dad: that he sees the best in people, even when they don’t deserve it. Adrien had brushed it off at the time, thinking it was just a mother bragging about her son. But after Clearwater... after everything... he realized it was true, and it bothered him more than he wanted to admit.

He wasn’t sure if that trait made Noah incredibly strong or painfully vulnerable. Maybe it was a bit of both. Forgiveness is easy to preach but hard to practice, and somehow Noah managed to do it without carrying bitterness. It scared him how quickly he’d accepted his apology, like he didn’t fully grasp how easily a forgiving heart could be exploited.

"Someone’s gonna take advantage of that someday," he muttered to himself, jaw tightening. "If they haven’t already."

He ran a hand through his hair and leaned back against the headboard, staring blankly at a spot on the wall. Then his mind circled back to the party, Jace’s party. The so-called biggest event of the year. He had brushed it aside when Liam tried to drag him into going, shrugging it off because he wasn’t in the mood for drunk idiots and loud music.

But now?

Now Noah was going.

Because she was invited.

Such bullshit

He frowned, feeling the confusion tighten in his chest again. It didn’t make sense. Sure, Noah’s name had been getting more attention lately, Ethan’s boyfriend, Adrien’s... whatever he was to Noah, Vanessa’s public rival. But popularity doesn’t erase reputation overnight, and Jace’s crowd didn’t suddenly grow a conscience.

"He shouldn’t even have gotten an invite," he muttered, shaking his head. "Not from them."

And he should have known about it.

He stretched his legs out and leaned back against the headboard, discomfort settling in as he thought more about it. If his friends were planning something, he would know, right? They didn’t keep secrets from him. But Jace wasn’t one to hold back if it suited him. And Vanessa—well, she thrived on stirring up drama.

Adrien’s jaw clenched.

He remembered the pool incident vividly... Noah coughing and shivering, water streaked down his face, and the laughter around him sounding cruel and too loud.

Adrien had pretended to find it funny back then, but inside he had been fuming, warning Vanessa never to do that again behind closed doors. Even now, thinking about it made anger flicker in his chest.

"If they try anything again..." His voice trailed off, but the unvoiced threat hung heavily in the air.

He glanced down at the rug beneath his feet, fingers drumming absently on his thigh. He hadn’t intended to go. He definitely wasn’t the type to show up just to stand in a corner and pretend to enjoy himself. Liam had practically begged him, promising that it’d be good for him to "relax for once," whatever that meant.

But now?

Now he had a reason that went beyond annoyance or curiosity, a reason that would keep him up if he ignored it.

He pushed himself off the bed with a slow exhale, feeling the decision settle into his bones before the thought fully took shape.

"I’m going," he murmured, rubbing the back of his neck again. "Just in case."

Because whether Noah believed it or not...

Whether he ever said it out loud or not...

Noah always walked straight into trouble with or without realizing it. And someone had to make sure he didn’t fall in again.

And this time, that someone would be Adrien himself, funny enough.