Page 164 of Echoes of Us

Noah sighed. “Yeah. Atty, I went out on a Sunday. You can go out on Sundays too. It’s not a crime.” He sounded exasperated.

I tried to brush off his tone, not let it get to me. I kissed his thigh again, and he relaxed on the bed. I started again, ignoring the nagging feeling in the back of my head, trying to lose myself in the sounds he made and the feel of his body. I worked my fingers into him and took him in my mouth.

Noah moaned loudly. “You’re so fucking good at that, Atty.” He lifted his shoulder off the bed, squirming.

I doubled my efforts, and he let out another noise.

“You can make me come so easily like this. Fuck,sometimes I feel selfish keeping you to myself. You should be out there fucking everybody in sight, then come back to me as a sex god. I’d keep you locked up in my room.”

I stopped again. I frowned, crawling over him. Noah opened his eyes, confused at the lack of contact, and I tilted his chin, keeping his eyes on me. His pupils were dilated.

“For fuck’s sake,” I whispered, leaning my forehead on his shoulder.

“What?” he asked, still dazed.

“You’re high, Noah. It’s seven a.m. on a Monday, and you’re high right now.” I moved away from him.

“It’s just a little Molly. It was ages ago, it’s just not out yet.” He tried to pull me back to him.

“Yeah? What else did you do while you were there?”

He sat up on the bed and licked his lips, looking annoyed. “Are you going to start with this again? Right now?”

I knew that face now. I wished I didn’t, but it had become familiar. My Noah had left, and shitty Noah took his place.

“Why do you always avoid my questions?”

“Because I didn’t do anything else, and you just keep nagging like you’re my mom or my fucking wife.”

My eyes were fixed on the bed. I remembered when he’d told me he thought it was sweet when I worried about him. It was right here, on this bed.

“You don’t have to get shitty with me, Noah. How did you expect me to react to you coming home like that?”

He rolled his eyes and dropped back on the bed. “I expected you to fuck me, not give me a lecture.” He rolled off the bed. “That’s not what you’re here for,” he added, and it was like a stab to the heart.

“No. Then why am I here?”

Noah strode towards the bathroom, not even glancing back. “Fuck if I know,” he mumbled.

I closed my eyes. “I’ve had it, Noah. I’m going to move in with Colin this week.”

He stopped, placing his hand on the doorframe. “Do whatever the fuck you want, Atticus.” He stepped into the bathroom and shut the door behind him.

I pressed my hands to my face. Where did he go? Where the hell did Noah go? I pulled my shirt and shoes back on and left the apartment.

Noah texted me five hours later, apologizing and asking me to come home. I didn’t answer, but he showed up for training—not to join, but to pull me aside and talk. He told me he was tired from not sleeping and that the whole weekend with his mom had been a mess. He waited for me to finish, and we went home together. I told him I was serious about moving in with Colin, but when we reached his apartment, he just guided me towards the sofa and sat on my lap, wrapping his arms tightly around my neck. He sniffled, and he kept telling me over and over that he was sorry. Somehow, this hurt even more.

On Wednesday, he helped me pack up my dorm after training and move my things to Colin and Ezra’s spare bedroom. We had another fight that night and I stayed at his place. Every day, I felt like I had less and less of the Noah I loved. He still slept close to me and kissed me every chance he got, but his bad mood was prominent, and everything made him snap.

Then Friday came.

Doomsday.

I got to the apartment after training and found Noah playing video games with his stoner friends—the ones that used to hang around him all the time. They were obviously smoking, and there were bottles and cups scattered around the apartment. It was like the house was reverting back in time.

Noah glanced at me. “Hey, Atty,” he said, and the rest followed like zombies.

“Hey.”

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