Page 39 of Dared

16

Istared at the text with dawning horror. “I have to go,” I said, cutting off Charlie mid-sentence.

“Everything okay?” he asked, but I didn’t have time to talk. There was only one thing I needed to do, and that was to get to number 1, the Mansions.

Leo was hurting, and I hadn’t been there for him.

By the time I reached the Victorian terrace where JJ lived with his housemates, I was panting, out of breath from my sprint there. Before I could knock, the door swung open, and JJ was standing there, blocking my path to Leo, his arms folded across his chest.

“Before I let you in, I want to say something. Whatever this is between you and Leo isn’t my business. Whatismy business is my friend’s happiness. You fuck with him, and you’ll live to regret it.” I’d never seen him act so cold before. JJ was warm,social, the life of the party. But right now, he was looking at me as if he’d happily slit my throat if I made the wrong move.

“I understand. I don’t want to hurt him. Ever. I’d never purposely make him upset. He…he’s the most important person in the world to me,” I said, and fucking hell, my voice was cracking.

JJ’s expression softened slightly, but he still didn’t move. “He told me about the kissing for practice. What are you getting out of it? I don’t want you to take advantage of him. He’s not…experienced.”

“And he knows his own fucking mind,” I ground out, trying to keep my cool. “I’d never take advantage of him.”

“Answer my question.”

Question… Oh, fuck. How was I supposed to answer that? “Uh…I like it, okay? What business is it of yours?”

“You like kissing Leo,” JJ stated. The corners of his lips turned up, and I wasn’t sure I liked the expression on his face.

“That’s what I fucking said. Are you gonna let me in after panicking me with your text, or do I have to stand out here all night?”

“One more thing, and I’ll let you in. Two things, in fact. Be patient with him. It might take a while for you both to be on the same page. And the other thing.” He paused until I raised my brows, impatiently gesturing with my hands for him to continue. Now, he smiled properly. No, it was a smirk. “Think about why you like kissing him.”

“Whatever,” I mumbled, pushing past him into the hallway when he finally stepped aside. He stopped me with a hand on my arm.

“I’m serious.”

Scrubbing my hand across my face, I nodded. “I know you are. I just…I really need to see him.”

“Okay. He’s in the lounge with Nic, playingMario Kart.”

“Thanks.”

I barely noticed JJ following me into the lounge and Niccolò quickly ending the game, both of them discreetly exiting the room. I only had eyes for Leo, curled up in the corner of the sofa wearing someone else’s hoodie, his eyes all red and swollen and his soft lips cracked and bitten. It hurt so much to see him like that, and I didn’t even know what had happened to make him so upset. All I knew was that JJ had told me that Leo had a really upsetting evening and needed me now.

“Leo. Baby,” I choked out, and his head flew up, his eyes wide as he stared at me. Reaching the sofa, I wasted no time in sinking into it and pulling him into my arms. He winced, and I immediately stilled, but then he burrowed into me, wrapping his arms around my neck and pressing his nose into my throat.

“Finn,” he breathed shakily, overwhelming relief in his voice, and I simultaneously felt like crying and fucking killing anyone who’d contributed to my best friend being in such a state.

I held on to him, gently rubbing up and down his back and pressing soft kisses to the parts of his head I could reach. When he eventually sat up straight, he looked at me with huge, sad eyes, his bottom lip trembling. Fucking hell, it was agonising seeing him like this. I’d do anything to take his pain away.

“What happened?” I said, leaning forwards to kiss his cheek. “Please tell me.”

He made a whimpering sound and buried his face in the juncture of my neck and shoulder again. Eventually, the whole story came out, and by the end, he wasn’t the only one with tears in his eyes. I wished more than anything that I could have done things differently, but I couldn’t. All I could do was be there for him now and to let him know I wasn’t going anywhere. I needed to thank JJ and Niccolò, too. If they hadn’t been there…

The thought of him all alone, crying on the floor,killedme.

“I’m so sorry, baby,” I murmured, stroking my thumb gently under his eyes, brushing his tears away. I couldn’t give a single fuck about the fact that I was still calling him “baby” and that JJ and Niccolò were probably spying on us and would hear me and probably see that I couldn’t stop kissing him. All I wanted to do was to make him happy again.

“Not your fault,” he mumbled, curling back into me. A yawn overtook him. “Sorry. I’m so tired.”

“Yeah, I can see that. I’m not surprised. Want me to take you home? Mine or yours?”

He nodded. “Yours, please.”

---