My Stepbrother, My Enemy {BL}-Chapter 83: He’s Here

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That made him stop for a moment. His jaw tightened, and I could feel the atmosphere in the room change. Adrien looked deep in thought, almost haunted, and for the first time that night, he didn’t have a snarky comeback ready.

His eyes, those sharp, green eyes that usually sparkled with mischief or defiance...appeared distant, almost empty. A few strands of his dark hair fell into his face, and under the lamp’s glow, the angles of his jawline and cheekbones looked softer than usual. He wasn’t just good-looking in the typical way; there was something quietly tragic about him, like he’d been carrying a heavy burden for too long.

Finally, he spoke, his voice barely above a whisper. "There’s no fucking way I love her," he said flatly. "And honestly... I don’t think I’ve ever loved anyone."

I frowned and sat up a bit. "Never?"

He shook his head. "Not in the way that people usually talk about. I don’t think I’m made for that. For a long time, I thought I just couldn’t love. Every time I got close to someone, it either turned out to be fake, or... I couldn’t really feel what I was supposed to feel."

There was something about the way he said it that made my heart ache. For all his arrogance and sharp edges, there was this part of Adrien that seemed quietly... broken.

I hugged my knees to my chest and smiled softly. "One day," I said gently, "someone’s going to show you how to love, Adrien. And when that happens, you’ll probably act like a total loser trying to get them to love you back."

That got a small laugh out of him, the corners of his mouth curling up into a smirk. "You really think so?"

"Oh, absolutely," I said, grinning. "You’ll be writing terrible poetry, leaving flowers on their doorstep, doing all those cliché things the male leads do in my novelkisss."

He groaned dramatically. "Please, spare me. I’d rather die than be that pathetic."

"You say that now," I teased. "But just wait, you’ll be lovesick and unbearable. I’ll have to remind you how you used to tease me for reading romance novels."

He laughed again, shaking his head. "Shut up, Elf."

We went back and forth like that for what felt like ages...teasing, bickering, and laughing until our voices quieted down and the night wrapped around us like a cozy blanket. I don’t even remember when I started to feel tired. At some point in our banter, my eyelids got heavy, and Adrien’s voice seemed to fade away, like a dream trailing off.

Outside my room, I didn’t know my mom and Keith had been standing near the door, listening quietly. I would’ve been mortified if I’d known, but instead, they just shared a smile before walking away, happy.

When morning came, I woke up alone, sunlight pouring through my curtains. I stretched lazily, blinking away sleep, realizing I’d dozed off right in the middle of our conversation. My bed was a mess, one of my pillows was on the floor, and my phone had somehow ended up half-buried under the blanket.

Adrien’s soft voice drifted back to me, and I couldn’t help but smile. For once, thinking about him didn’t annoy me. It just felt... warm. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

It was Sunday morning, one that should’ve felt peaceful but didn’t. My desk was cluttered with open textbooks, scribbled notes, and half-finished mugs of coffee I’d forgotten. I’d been trying to catch up on all the work I missed while I was away...two weeks’ worth of assignments my teachers had kindly sent me with the subject line, "Hope you’re doing well!"

Yeah, so thoughtful.

I sighed, spinning my pen between my fingers while glaring at my biology homework. The diagrams of cell structures were starting to blur. Every few minutes, I felt my brain threatening to shut down, but the thought of walking into school tomorrow completely unprepared was scarier than mitochondria ever could be.

The clock on my wall ticked slowly, each second dragging like syrup. By the time I finally finished labeling the last drawing and checked off the last box on my assignment list, the sun was already high in the sky. My stomach growled in protest as I leaned back in my chair. "Finally," I muttered, tossing my pen onto the desk. "I’m done... until I remember I still have chemistry."

I pushed my chair back and flopped onto my bed, staring at the ceiling. Even with the relief of finishing, there was this quiet dread sitting in my stomach. Tomorrow meant school—noise, drama, teachers asking too many questions, and classmates who’d want to know everything about the "family bonding trip" I’d just been on.

The thought alone made me groan. "Maybe I can fake a fever," I mumbled to myself. "Just one more day—"

A knock at my door interrupted my brilliant plan.

"Noah?" My mom’s cheerful voice came through the door, way too excited for my taste.

I sat up warily. "Yeah?"

"Can I come in?"

"Sure," I answered, but my tone was cautious.

The door opened, and Mom stepped inside, her face lit up with some secret happiness. I frowned immediately. That kind of smile usually meant she was about to drop some big news on me.

"What’s with the grin?" I asked suspiciously, closing my laptop. "You look like you’re about to tell me something I won’t like."

"Oh, you’ll love this," she said, her tone almost singsong and mysterious.

I raised an eyebrow. "Is it Gigi? Did she finally realize she can’t survive without me and showed up?"

Mom’s grin grew wider. "Nope. Guess again."

My heart skipped a beat for some reason. "...Skylar?"

She shook her head.

"Then who—"

Her eyes sparkled as she leaned against the doorframe. "It’s Ethan."

For a moment, I couldn’t breathe.

"Ethan?" I said, blinking in disbelief.

She nodded, clearly enjoying my shock. "He’s downstairs right now. He said he wanted to see you."

I shot up so fast that my chair almost tipped over. "He’s here now?"

"Mhmm," Mom hummed, clearly relishing my panic.

"Oh my God," I muttered, running my hands through my hair nervously. My heart was racing so fast I thought it might just leap out of my chest. "Why didn’t you say something sooner? What if I look a mess? Oh, God—what if I smell like study sweat?"

Mom frowned, probably wondering if study sweat was even a thing. "You look fine, sweetheart. Go on before he thinks you’re avoiding him."

"I wasn’t avoiding him," I weakly protested, already heading toward the mirror. My reflection looked as frazzled as I felt, hair a bit tangled, tired eyes, and a wrinkled sweatshirt. "Okay, maybe I was... sort of. But that’s not the point."

Mom just smiled that knowing smile that made me feel like a kid again. "You two have a lot to talk about," she said lightly, and before I could respond, she was already heading back out into the hall.

I turned to face my reflection again, still feeling my pulse race. My mind was a swirl of emotions, shock, excitement, guilt, and something softer I wasn’t quite ready to name yet.