Page 83 of A Lie in Church

I smiled. I wasn’t sure about how I felt about Grey anymore, but I still cared about him. We had been close friends before we thought of dating. He had shown me that a broken heart could beat again.

“So, did he tell you anything? It’s been a month, Chlo.”

“I know,” I whispered.

“What’s going on?” she asked in a serious tone.

“It’s complicated.”

“Oh my God, please don’t tell me that kiss turned your brain upside down.” She sighed.

“No, it’s not that.”

“Then, what? Is it Adrian?”

“No,” I snapped.

Anything I’d felt toward Adrian was now replaced with rage. It was as if someone had broken me from a love spell after I witnessed the proposal. I had been an idiot to take his sweet gestures as affection. With Tristan, it was like a never-ending maze, and he was still a box of mystery I wanted to unwrap.

There was a long silence as Belvina waited for me to explain. I didn’t even know what to tell her. I looked on the bright side. I had a roof over my head. I also had Morris, and Tristan took care of my tuition. It wasn’t like my family gave a shit if I was alive or dead.

“You deserve an explanation after all he did to you. Ask him for the truth and get your ass out of there before you get tangled in something you won’t be able to escape from,” she said and hung up before I could say anything.

Why is she mad at me?

I sighed and stared outside at the darkness. It was Saturday night, and I had been working on a few school projects. I thought of what Belvina had said.

Why am I scared of asking him?I wanted to know his reason and if he would keep his promise about telling my family the truth.

I went to the bathroom and filled the bathtub with warm water and threw in a bath bomb. I undressed and submerged myself inside the water; the strawberry scent engulfed me. I closed my eyes and tried to remember what it’d felt like to be me, but I realized I’d lost that sense of who I was a long time ago. When I had been growing up, it had been hard to find myself, especially in a household where I had to pretend all the time to avoid my mom’s judgment and wrath.

Is it wrong of me to be enjoying my stay here? The comfort and freedom?

Vina had had a point. I should get out before things got messy.

I stayed a few more minutes in the tub before stepping out and drying myself. It was almost midnight, and it looked like it was about to rain from the sound of thunder and the occasional lightning that made me jump.

I turned off the lights and went under the covers. Sleeping while it was raining hit different. The sound of the rain was like a peaceful lullaby that put me to sleep. I left the drapes open, watching the trees close by sway to the rhythm of the wind. There was a knock on my door. I sat up as I told the person to open the door.

“Did I wake you?” Tristan asked from the doorway.

“No, I just got in bed.”

“Do you mind if I sleep here?”

I hesitated, knowing it would be different, sleeping next to him tonight. I hadn’t gotten that kiss out of my head, and every time I entered the kitchen, the counter replayed the scene in front of me. Maybe it had been different for him; maybe he had forgotten we’d ever kissed. I didn’t know what he battled within, but if sleeping next to me helped him get some sleep, then I was cool with it.

“Sure,” I said, creating some room on the bed for him.

He stepped in and shut the door. The room was dim from the light outside, so he could make his way to the bed.

“Thank you,” he whispered next to me, keeping distance between our bodies.

I didn’t know why I felt nervous. I hadn’t felt like this last time we shared a bed.

“You can hold me if you want,” I said, sensing his hesitation from behind me.

I sucked in a breath as soon as his arms wrapped around my bare stomach. I should have considered that. His callous fingers brushed my skin as he moved closer. I blamed the cold outside for the goose bumps on my skin. It was now raining heavily. The pitter-patter sound drowned the noise around us.