Page 77 of Push My Buttons
Their faces crumple in hurt. But all I feel is numb. I slip on my coat, each movement mechanical, my heart pounding an angry beat.
“At least let one of us walk with you,” Theo pleads, voice urgent. “Just to the café. Then we’ll back off, I promise.”
I hesitate—rational thought whispering that I’m in danger—but fury pins me still. I shake my head.
“I’ll text when I get there,”I sign, my hands still trembling so badly the words blur into each other. It’s the only peace offering I can find.
Before they can argue further, I slip out the door, closing it firmly behind me. The cool morning air hits my face, grounding me as I hurry down the stairs and onto the street.
The walk to the café is only fifteen minutes, but today it feels endless. Every person I pass becomes a potential threat. The man reading a newspaper on the bench—is he watching me over the edge of the pages? The woman walking her dog—why does she keep glancing in my direction? The delivery driver parked across the street—has his van been there before?
My heart pounds against my ribs, my breath coming in short gasps as paranoia takes hold. I walk faster, keeping to crowded areas, constantly checking over my shoulder. This is what they wanted to protect me from—this suffocating fear, this constant vigilance. But their protection came at the cost of my trust, my agency, my right to face my own reality.
A man in a hooded sweatshirt passes too close, bumping my shoulder. I flinch violently, nearly dropping my bag. He mutters an apology and continues on, but my pulse races as I watch him go. Could it be him? The one who's been leaving gifts and notes? The one who knows my real name, who remembers my voice?
By the time I reach the café, I’m trembling hard—and only when I push through the door do I realize my cheeks are wet with tears, cold drops sliding into my shirt collar. Sweat beads along my hairline despite the cool morning air. Maya looks up from behind the counter; her warm smile flickers out the moment she sees me.
“Wren? Are you okay?” she asks, setting down the pitcher she’s filling.
I can’t answer. My hands shake too badly to form coherent signs. I step past her into the back room, closing the door behind me. There, I lean against the wall and slide down until I’m sitting on the floor, knees drawn to my chest.
My phone buzzes in my pocket.
Jace: [Did you make it to the café safely?]
My vision blurs. I type my response with trembling fingers, [Yes.] The second I press send, the floodgates open. Full sobs rip from deep in my chest, I press my head against my knees, hardly able to catch my breath.
There are footsteps outside and Maya calls through the door: “Wren?”
I can’t answer. Suddenly, the kitchen swing-door crashes open and Marcus storms in, arms flung wide.
“What the hell is going on in here?” His voice echoes off the walls. “You can’t just break down crying in front of customers. This is a café, not a therapy session!” He pins me with a glare. “You look like a lunatic. I can’t have people seeing you like this. Get it together—or get out.”
Maya steps between us. “Marcus, leave her alone!” she snaps.
Marcus's words hit me like a physical blow. Lunatic. It's too close to what I've feared all along—that I'm broken, damaged beyond repair. The walls of the back room seem to close in, air suddenly too thick to breathe.
"She needs space," Maya insists, but Marcus keeps talking, his voice becoming a distant roar in my ears as panic claws up my throat.
I can't be here. Can't breathe. Can't think.
My legs move before my mind catches up. Standing, I push past them both, stumbling through the kitchen and out into the main café. Customers turn to stare as I rush past, their faces blurring together. Someone calls my name—Maya, probably—but I can't stop.
The betrayal cuts deeper than I thought possible. Jace and Theo lied to me. For weeks. Intercepting notes, hiding evidence, discussing me behind my back like I'm a child to be managed rather than a woman who deserves the truth. After everything we've shared, everything I trusted them with... they kept me in the dark.
I burst through the café doors onto the sidewalk, gasping for air that doesn't seem to fill my lungs. People move around me in a kaleidoscope of colors and sounds, too bright, too loud.
"Wren! Wait!" Maya's voice follows me out onto the street. "Please stop!"
I can't. If I stop, I'll shatter completely. I need to get away, need to think, need to breathe.
My feet carry me blindly forward, away from the café, away from Maya's concerned calls, away from the memory of Jace’s and Theo's faces when I discovered their deception. I push through the morning crowd, barely registering the annoyed looks as I bump shoulders and cut across paths.
He's still out there. All this time, watching me, leaving gifts, writing notes about my voice, about singing for him. While I foolishly believed I was safe, protected by the men I trusted most.
"Wren, please!" Maya's voice is closer now. She must be following me.
I quicken my pace, turning blindly, desperate to escape, and slam straight into someone. Strong hands grip my shoulders, steadying me. I look up, disoriented, trying to focus through my tears.
