My Stepbrother, My Enemy {BL}-Chapter 163: Always Been You
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My mind was racing, a chaotic blend of disbelief and heat, making the hallway spin around us. Adrien’s lips were so close to mine that I could still taste him and feel the lingering pressure of his mouth against mine, filled with a desperate passion.
This was the boy who had once been my tormentor, the one who turned high school into a battlefield for me, he was kissing me like I was something precious, something he’d been craving for months. And to complicate matters even more, he was my stepbrother.
My stepbrother.
That thought echoed in my mind like a thunderclap, drowning out everything else.
Does this mean... does he actually like me? More than just like me? Does this mean that Adrien liked boys too?
The realization hit me like a wave, stealing my breath and sending my heart racing in a dizzying rhythm, leaving me weak. My knees felt shaky, as if the floor had tilted and the only thing keeping me steady was the warmth of his body against mine and his hands gently cradling my face.
I felt like I might collapse right there, lost in shock and confusion, overwhelmed by a fluttering thrill I couldn’t deny. Because beneath the tangled family ties and the complicated feelings, there were butterflies stirring in my stomach, spreading warmth through me.
This was wrong...so wrong-but it felt so good, in a way that made my chest ache with something dangerously close to hope.
Something was truly wrong with me, I needed to get my head checked again.
Adrien slowly pulled back, just enough for our lips to part with a soft, reluctant sound that sent a shiver down my spine. He rested his forehead against mine for a moment, his breath warm and uneven against my skin.
When he finally opened his eyes, they looked softer than ever, deep green filled with a vulnerability that shattered any composure I had left. His thumbs brushed my cheekbones, tracing the pink flush I was sure was there, and he looked at me like he’d just done something reckless and was terrified of what came next.
"There," he whispered, his voice low and rough, trembling slightly as if getting the words out had cost him dearly. "Please... don’t run from me, Noah."
Shit, what do I even do in this situation?
The plea in his words hit me harder than the kiss itself. I couldn’t look away, my lips still tingling and swollen, my breath shallow and unsteady.
Words escaped me, my mind was too full, spinning with questions I didn’t know how to voice. I blinked a couple of times, searching his face for some explanation, some sign that this wasn’t just a dream I’d abruptly wake from.
What... what did this mean? Could he really be in love with me?
My stepbrother. In love with me.
That thought should have horrified me, should have sent me fleeing down the hall to escape as far as possible. But instead, I stayed right there, willingly trapped between the wall and his body, my hands still clutching the fabric of his shirt, as if letting go would shatter something fragile.
My heart was pounding so loudly I was sure he could hear it with each breath we took together, and those butterflies were just fluttering harder, delighting in the warmth of his hands on my skin and the taste of him lingering on my lips.
"A-Adrien," I finally managed, my voice barely above a whisper, cracked and uncertain. It wasn’t a question or an accusation, just his name, spoken as if I was testing the weight of this new, impossible reality.
He swallowed hard, his gaze never leaving mine. One hand moved from my cheek to tuck a stray strand of hair behind my ear, a tenderness that made my chest tighten.
"I know," he murmured, as though he could read every swirling thought in my head. "I know how messed up this is. I know what I’ve done to you... what I put you through."
His voice softened, tinged with a regret that felt heavy. "But I couldn’t keep pretending any longer. Not after last night. Not after seeing you almost-" He stopped, jaw clenched, as a dark memory flashed between us. When he spoke again, it was softer, almost pleading. "I’ve been fighting this for so long, Noah. Hating myself for it, but it’s always been you. Fuck...it was so obvious that even Vanessa knew about it."
My breath caught, a soft sound that made his eyes flicker with a mix of hope and fear. I wanted to say something-anything, to make sense of the storm inside me, but I could only stare at him, feeling the heat of his confession seep into my bones, reshaping everything I thought I knew about us, about him, about myself.
The hallway felt impossibly quiet, the world holding its breath as we stood there tangled together in the aftermath of a kiss that changed everything.
And even though my mind screamed that this was wrong, that we couldn’t do this, my heart, rebellious and reckless-whispered that maybe, just maybe, it had been waiting for this all along.
His voice cracked as he started to speak, low and ragged, like words locked away for years were finally breaking free after that kiss had blown the door wide open. He didn’t pull away completely-his hands stayed softly on my waist, as if letting go entirely might make me disappear, but his eyes searched mine with a deep regret that squeezed my throat.
"I couldn’t handle it, Noah," he said, the confession spilling out in a rush. "I couldn’t deal with how I felt about you. I couldn’t deal with the fact that you were the one person that didn’t seem to worship the ground I walked on back then. A normal person would’ve just talked to you, or been kind, or figured it out quietly. But I’m an idiot and an asshole, and instead I-"
He swallowed hard, shame flashing across his face. "I bullied you. I thought if I was cruel enough, pushed you away, those feelings would go away. But they never did, not even when I tried getting with Vanessa and so many other girls but all I could think about was you."
