Page 27

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

Gabriel awoke to the whirr of cars driving by and the chirping of birds from outside. The blinds were drawn shut, mostly keeping his room dark, but a sliver of light spilled in through the corners of his bedroom window.

Yawning, he got out of bed and walked to the wardrobe, where he took out a pair of underwear and slipped them on, doing the same with a pair of clean black jeans and a plain maroon-colored T-shirt. Walking into the hall where he’d left his used clothing on the floor hours prior, he searched for his phone, soon taking it out of his dirty jeans pocket. He then grabbed all his clothes, stinking of cigarette smoke, sweat, and alcohol, and took them into the laundry, dropping them in the hamper to wash later.

Tapping his phone’s screen, Gabriel saw it was eleven in the morning, and he had a message from Enzo. Hey, you okay?

Clicking into it, Gabriel knew Enzo was just checking on him after last night. It was a system they’d followed with each other, where Gabriel would also do the same when Enzo ended up going home with someone.

I’m fine , Gabriel responded. Want to come over?

His phone vibrated. I’ll be there in a few , Enzo replied.

Putting his phone down on the coffee table in the living room, Gabriel went to the kitchen to make himself toast and topped it with his favorite jam before making a mug of coffee. He swallowed a painkiller down with a sip of coffee to deal with the throbbing in his head from his hangover, before taking a few bites of his breakfast.

There was a knock on the front door, and Gabriel walked down the hall to answer it, letting Enzo inside. They went to the kitchen first, where Gabriel made Enzo a mug of coffee before they headed into the living room and sat on the couch together.

“So... how was last night?” Enzo asked before taking a sip from his mug.

Gabriel sighed, and picked at the edge of the pillowcase with his free hand.

“I’m guessing the guy was an asshole?” Enzo said.

“No,” Gabriel mumbled before lifting his head and looking at Enzo, his dark eyes watching him with a mix of curiosity and concern. Gabriel adjusted himself on the couch. “I didn’t sleep with him. I got sick and left.”

“Oh.” Enzo frowned. “Are you feeling okay now?”

“Yeah. It was just the alcohol.”

Enzo nodded, before sipping his coffee.

It was quiet for a few moments, and Gabriel’s mind wandered back to the events of the night before as he drank from his own mug.

“He reminded me of Viktor,” Gabriel said.

Enzo was quiet for a moment as he looked at Gabriel. “That’s... the guy who kidnapped you, isn’t it?”

“Yeah.” Gabriel chewed lightly on his lower lip. He hadn’t told Enzo what Viktor’s name was, but he didn’t need to considering how quickly Enzo connected the dots.

Gabriel sighed and set his mug down on the coffee table in front of him. He then leaned back against the cushions and stared down at his hands in his lap. “He just... Jack looked so much like Viktor. I thought it would be okay, but I freaked out and almost threw up in his face.” Despite feeling like crap, Gabriel couldn’t help but laugh at it now, but it didn’t make him feel better at all, it made him feel worse. It was embarrassing, but he knew Enzo wasn’t judging him harshly for it. He also wasn’t laughing. When Gabriel looked at Enzo again, he saw that his best friend was watching him, now with a deeper frown on his face.

“Gabriel—”

“It’s okay,” Gabriel assured. “He didn’t hurt me or anything, I just...”

“You miss him,” Enzo said. “You miss Viktor.”

Gabriel stared at Enzo and instinctively swallowed, feeling his eyes widen slightly. He couldn’t deny it, though. Enzo was right, Gabriel did miss Viktor. He wanted Viktor. Gabriel didn’t know what was wrong with him. He wasn’t supposed to want to be with his captor again. Gabriel felt like he was damaged beyond repair.

He felt his eyes sting with heat. “I’m never going to see him again. I can’t even call him, or go to his place, because I don’t have his number or address or... anything .” Gabriel breathed and wiped his eyes, but the tears kept flowing and streaming down his face, no matter how much he swiped at them.

Enzo lowered his eyes for a moment before looking at Gabriel again. “You love him,” he said quietly. It wasn’t a question. Enzo knew what was going on with him, and Gabriel was in no position to deny it, because it was true. As much as it scared him to admit to it, he did love Viktor.

“I hate him,” Gabriel said, sniffling and still wiping his eyes and cheeks, his skin burning beneath his fingers. Of course he didn’t mean it. He didn’t hate Viktor. He just hated being away from him. Hated being reminded of how Viktor had just let go of him like nothing had even happened between them. Like Gabriel didn’t matter. Like they didn’t matter.

Eyes blurry with tears, Gabriel watched as Enzo set his mug on the coffee table then got up and walked to him, wrapping his arms around him. Gabriel hugged him back, letting himself cry in his best friend’s arms.

After a while, Gabriel calmed down and stopped crying, and Enzo had gone back to sitting on the couch next to him. He stayed with Gabriel for hours as they talked about different things, and after, they watched a movie together.

It helped having Enzo here with him, but it didn’t stop Gabriel from thinking about Viktor and remembering all the things that had happened between them. Even if Gabriel still had feelings for Viktor, he knew it was time to acknowledge and accept that he wasn’t going to see him again. It was going to be difficult, and it was going to take time, but Gabriel knew it was going to be better for him in the long run if he just moved on.