Page 44 of Echoes of Us

Ezra Tate

he’s being an emotional leech

that’s what’s going on

Me

what’s going on is that you need to drop the bit and back off

I’m fine

I’ll see you tomorrow

thanks for the concern, but it’s not necessary

Noah stood before me. I looked up at his smiling face, feeling a tug at my heart.

“All done,” he said.

I tried to return the smile. This was fine. I could handle this just fine.

I woke up to a knock on the door. I tried to adjust my eyes to the light and glanced towards the sound. Noah was still fast asleep on his side and in my arms. He had his head resting on one arm and the other in a vice grip against his chest. He really liked cuddling.

I kissed his cheek, untangling myself from him. The knock came again as I pulled my shirt back on and checked my watch. I opened the door and stood blocking it, watching Colin and Ezra.

“So at least you’re alive,” Ezra said, looking unamused.

“It’s six in the morning,” I told them, glancing back at Noah’s sleeping form.

“He wanted to come over before you left for your run,” Colin said with a yawn. “Can we just come in so I can go back to sleep?” he asked.

I held onto the door, leaving less space for them to look through. “No, I’m going to stay in bed and go out for a jog.You see, when I said we’d talk tomorrow, I thought that meant the sun was out.”

“Att, this is important. We need to talk about this,” Ezra said.

I left the room and closed the door behind me. Colin’s brows knitted together as I crossed my arms.

“That’s weird,” he said and yawned again.

“What is it?”

“Are you seriously not going to let us in?” Ezra asked.

I pressed my lips together.

“Look, Att, I know you’re a big boy, and you think you can look after yourself, but you’re way in over your head with this whole thing. What happened on Friday?”

“He just needed a little help,” I said, keeping my voice down. “He’s my friend. I was just being there for him.”

Colin’s frown deepened. “Your friend? You think Noah’s your friend? That guy has a target on you the size of a fucking planet.”

What? “A target?” I repeated, feeling a bit defensive.

“Ezra’s just worried Noah is going to hit on you and break your heart. He’s just making it much more dramatic. Are you seriously not going to let us in? It’s six in the morning,” Colin said.

“I get that you’re worried about me, but I can handle it,” I said, my voice still low.

“Why are you talking like that?” Colin asked.

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