My Stepbrother, My Enemy {BL}-Chapter 38: To Protect You

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It happened so fast, I almost didn’t believe what I was seeing.

Ethan’s voice rang through the gym again, louder this time, sharp with anger. "You’re such a selfish bastard, Adrien!"

Adrien smirked, that same infuriating smirk that always made my stomach twist. "Says the guy who missed half his shots. Maybe next time try practicing instead of running your damn mouth."

The crowd gasped. Ethan’s expression hardened—and then, before anyone could react, he shoved Adrien hard in the chest again. The sound echoed, like thunder breaking through the noise. Adrien stumbled back a step, his eyes darkening as his jaw clenched.

"Oh, shit," I heard Gigi whisper from beside me.

Adrien shoved him back, harder. "Don’t start something you can’t finish, Seymour."

And then they were on each other.

The gym erupted in chaos. Ethan swung first, his fist connecting with Adrien’s jaw. Adrien barely flinched before tackling him, the two of them crashing to the polished floor with a sickening thud. Students screamed. The coach and players rushed forward, trying to pull them apart, but they were like wild animals, kicking, shouting, fists flying.

I couldn’t move. My heart was slamming against my ribs so hard I thought I might pass out.

"Noah!" Gigi yelled, grabbing my arm. "Don’t—"

But I was already moving.

Ethan was on his back now, Adrien pinning him down, his forearm pressing across Ethan’s chest, his teeth bared. "You think you’re fucking better than me?!" Adrien growled. "You’re nothing—"

"Adrien, stop!" I screamed, my voice shaking. I ran before I could think, before reason could catch up with me. The next thing I knew, I was between them, pushing at Adrien’s arm, trying to pull him back. "Stop it, both of you!"

I barely registered Ethan’s hand reaching for me or Adrien’s glare turning on me.

Then pain, sharp and sudden.

Someone’s arm jerked, maybe Ethan’s, maybe Adrien’s...I didn’t know. All I knew was that I was on the ground, the wind knocked out of me, my palms stinging against the court. The sound of shouting and footsteps blurred together around me.

"Noah!" Ethan’s voice broke through the noise, panicked.

I blinked up at the ceiling lights, my head spinning. Adrien was standing over us now, his chest heaving, his face pale as he looked at me, something flickering behind his eyes that I couldn’t read. Guilt? Shock?

"Get the hell away from him!" Ethan barked, shoving Adrien back as people rushed in to separate them.

Everything blurred after that...the coach yelling, security rushing in, students whispering. Gigi’s voice calling my name from somewhere far away.

And all I could think, lying there with the taste of blood in my mouth, was that Adrien hadn’t moved to help me.

He’d just stood there.

A few hours had passed by the time I’d been bandaged up and settled in the nurse’s office, my head was pounding, not from the fall actually, but from Gigi’s voice.

"I swear, Noah, you have zero self-preservation instincts!" she scolded, pacing in front of my bed like a mother hen who’d just watched her chick walk into traffic. "You could’ve been seriously hurt! What were you even thinking, jumping into the middle of all that?"

Skylar, sitting quietly in the corner, crossed her arms. Her black eyeliner smudged slightly, making her expression even softer than usual. "I mean, babe, I get why she did it... but damn, that was suicidal and in front of all those people no less."

"See? Even Skylar agrees!" Gigi gestured wildly, nearly knocking over a cup of water. "Noah, you can’t keep doing this! You’re not fucking Batman, okay? Next time, just...just scream or something. Let the adults handle it."

"I am fine, Gigi," I muttered, though my voice came out weaker than I wanted. "Promise,"

"Fine?" She scoffed. "You literally have an ice pack on your arm, and you almost got crushed between two angry basketball titans! Fine, he says!"

Skylar placed a gentle hand on Gigi’s shoulder. "Let’s give him a break, love. She looks like she’s already been through enough."

Gigi sighed, defeated. "You’re lucky I love you, Noah. Text me if you start feeling dizzy or anything, got it? I’ll take you home."

"I will."

"And don’t you dare go anywhere near Adrien or Ethan for the rest of the day."

"Uh-huh," I said with a small smile.

She narrowed her eyes, like she didn’t quite believe me, but finally left with Skylar, who gave me a sympathetic wave on her way out. The door closed behind them, and the room suddenly felt too quiet.

I leaned back against the pillow, staring at the ceiling tiles. My arm still ached, but it wasn’t terrible. Mostly, I just felt... tired.

The door creaked open again.

"Noah?"

I turned my head. Ethan stood there, his face marked by a bandage across his cheekbone, his usually bright eyes dim with guilt and his knuckles were still red.

He stepped closer, running a hand through his hair. "God, I’m so sorry. I didn’t—" He stopped, jaw tightening. "I shouldn’t have let it get that far. I should’ve just walked away like you told me to."

"Ethan—"

"I mean it," he said, his voice rough. "If I hadn’t lost my temper, if I’d just ignored him, maybe none of this would’ve happened. You wouldn’t have gotten hurt."

He was spiraling, pacing like he couldn’t stand still. Watching him like that—angry, frustrated, blaming himself—it hurt worse than the fall.

"Ethan," I said again, louder this time. "It’s not your fault."

"Yes, it is!" His voice cracked slightly. "I saw you on the ground and, God, Noah, you could’ve been seriously injured, and it’s because I couldn’t control myself!"

Something in me snapped.

"I’m fine!" I said, sitting up. "You keep saying it’s your fault, but it’s not! You think I didn’t know what I was doing when I stepped in?"

He blinked, startled.

"I didn’t want you to be the only one standing up for me, Ethan," I continued, my voice trembling. "I wanted to look after you too. Because you...because you matter to me, okay? I just—" I stopped, taking a shaky breath. "I didn’t think, I just moved. I didn’t want to watch you get hurt."

The room went quiet. He looked at me for a long time, like he was trying to process every word. Then his shoulders lowered, and his gaze softened.

"Noah..." His tone was quiet now, filled with something tender. He stepped closer, brushing a stray strand of hair away from my face with his thumb.