My Stepbrother, My Enemy {BL}-Chapter 134: A Bully’s Mentality

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I found myself staring at Jace’s hand, stretched out toward me, feeling completely frozen. I couldn’t even muster the fake smile I knew he probably wanted to see. His fingers were hovering, like some sort of ridiculous peace offering, but all I could think about, what I could feel were the memories he pretended didn’t matter anymore.

Like the times they had me cornered by my locker, the way Vanessa dumped a smoothie all over me in sophomore year while Jace filmed it, or that time they pushed me into the pool, a moment that still made me wake up in a cold sweat.

Adrien’s condescending smirk, Liam’s taunts, Kris’s gossip, Shannon’s cruel remarks, Vanessa’s need to humiliate me every chance she got... they all loomed over me like a pack of wolves eyeing their prey. And now, they were suddenly acting all nice, throwing around fake apologies and empty kindness like it could wipe away years of humiliation.

What was this? Just because people were noticing me now? Because Ethan loved me and Adrien had stopped being a jerk and suddenly I wasn’t the easiest target anymore?

Did they really think I was freaking clueless enough not to see through their little shitty act?

So...this was was a bully’s mentality, this irritating sense of entitlement.

"Hey, Noah," Jace said, snapping his fingers in front of my face. I could feel my fake smile fade, irritation creeping in. "I’m not waiting all night. Are you going to shake my hand or not?"

That was it, something inside me broke. Not with a bang, just a quiet snap, like a thin thread finally giving way.

I swatted his hand away. The sound might not have been loud, but it felt sharp enough to slice through the party noise.

"I’d rather drown myself than forgive you," I shot back, my voice surprisingly steady. "Do you genuinely think I’ve forgotten? Any of it? Do you think I’m naive enough to believe this—" I gestured toward his outstretched hand, "—is real?"

His face hardened, the polite mask slipping away so fast I almost thought I could see it fall apart.

"You don’t have a clue what you did to me," I pressed on, not caring that others were starting to notice. "The embarrassment. The panic attacks. Not being able to walk down the hallway without worrying about what you all had planned next. And you think I’d shake your hand? You’re delusional, Jace. Completely delusional if you think I’m just going to bend over and say ’why, sure, Jace! Let bygones be bygones, we’re besties now!’ "

For a moment, he just stared at me, looking beyond shocked. But then his jaw clenched, his brows furrowed, and the real Jace, the nasty one hidden beneath that Casanova charm...came out, like oil rising to the surface.

"Wow," he sneered, his tone loud and venomous. "Turning down my kindness?! Looks like you really think you’re hot shit now, huh?! A little attention, a boyfriend, some new clothes, and suddenly you’ve forgotten your place, like some little bitch, huh?!"

He moved closer, lowering his voice but still loud enough for a few people nearby to hear.

"You’ll always be a nobody, Noah. Just a worthless little faggot who got lucky for a minute and thinks he matters." His lip curled. "Don’t worry. This won’t last. People like you always fall back to the fucking bottom, you stupid motherfucker."

A few heads turned, murmurs began, and someone mumbled, "Dude, what’s his problem?" But Jace didn’t stick around to hear. He spun on his heel and stormed off, shoving past a group of juniors so hard that one almost toppled over.

I stayed put as the air buzzed with leftover adrenaline. My heart pounded against my ribs, but underneath all that shaking and stinging, I felt something different.

Not fear. Not shame. Just... relief.

Finally, I hadn’t backed down.

I hadn’t stayed silent or avoided eye contact or buried my anger to keep someone else at ease.

This time, I’d stood my ground.

And damn, it felt good.

I took a long, shaky breath, releasing the tension of the entire night. My heart was still racing from the confrontation, but I pushed myself to get off the barstool and step away from the crowd. I needed a moment to breathe. I needed some air. Most importantly, I needed Ethan. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

I dialed his number while weaving through laughing students, sticky floors, and clouds of cheap cologne, pressing the phone to my ear. The bass thumped through the walls, too loud for me to hear even my own thoughts or Ethan’s ringtone. So I slipped down a side hallway and found an empty bathroom at the far end.

The door creaked as I pushed it open.

To my surprise, the bathroom was clean, considering the party’s chaos. Soft yellow light spilled from an old-fashioned sconce, warming the white tiles. A wide mirror stretched above the sink, marked by fingerprints from people who’d likely come in to fix their hair, cry, or throw up. The window above the towel rack was cracked open, letting in a faint breeze that brought some cool night air inside. A lavender-scented candle, probably stolen from Jace’s mom—burned on the counter, fighting a losing battle against the lingering smell of alcohol.

I shut the door behind me, thankful for the silence, and pressed the phone closer to my ear.

Still no answer.

The call went to voicemail, and I stared at the screen for a moment, worry tightening in my chest. He promised he’d be here by now. Ethan was always reliable, always. Something must’ve happened, something he couldn’t talk about.

"I should just leave," I said quietly to myself. "This was a dumb idea anyway."

I checked the time. I’d been there just over an hour. In that time, I’d been insulted, nearly pressured into drinking, and now couldn’t reach the one person I trusted. I wasn’t scared...just exhausted, furious, and so over this night.

I was about to open my phone to try calling him again when my phone buzzed.

Unknown Number: Noah, it’s Ethan, my phone died. So I’m using a friend’s, don’t freak out.

My stomach dropped a bit, not in a bad way, just from relief. I let out a breath, leaning back against the cool tile wall.

Me: Are you okay? I’ve been worried.

A few seconds passed, the typing dots appearing and disappearing like he was thinking it over.

Unknown Number: Yeah, I’m fine. Just got held up. I’ll explain everything. Can you meet me in the garden behind the house? We need to talk.

The garden? Behind the house?

I stared at the message. A small prick of unease nudged at me, faint but real. The phrasing seemed... off. A bit formal. A little stiff, not like Ethan’s usual chaotic texting.

But maybe he was feeling upset about the whole Adrien-cliff thing. Maybe that’s why he sounded... distant. Maybe he needed space to talk without everyone staring or Jace lurking like some angry drunk rooster.

I typed back slowly.

Me: Okay. I’ll be there soon.

My reflection in the mirror looked a bit pale, eyes still sharp with the remnants of anger from earlier. I swallowed, tucked a loose curl behind my ear, and whispered to myself, "It’s just Ethan. Just talk to him. You’re fine."

But as I stepped out of the bathroom, I couldn’t shake off the slight chill creeping down my spine.

It felt like the night was holding its breath.