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Chapter Thirty-Three

Ashton

I t’s so beautiful, his words luring me, calling me towards him.

My feet shuffle beneath me as I push through the crowd, my eyes glued to that broken boy on stage, a boy that’s summoned me with a voice forged from angels.

He keeps his eyes closed the entire song, singing like he feels every single word.

The soft melody tugs my heart, tugs so hard I think it might rip out of my chest.

I’m standing there in a complete trance, stuck in his song and then it ends.

His eyes flutter open, and immediately find mine.

I can tell he wasn’t expecting me, fear suddenly grips me by the neck, but then he’s climbing down off the stage.

The band continues to play, the soft melody a backdrop to this moment.

The crowd parts as he walks forward, his eyes never leaving mine.

He’s slow, like he can’t tell if I’m part of his reality or another dream he’s conjured up.

I stand still, waiting for him to get to me, passing by the adoring fans, watching and waiting to see what is happening.

My fingers curl into fists, my nails cutting into my palms, the pain keeping me present .

He tilts his head to the side, his hair falling away from those amber eyes I've missed so much. My heart gallops inside my chest, beating erratically, my breath quickens the closer he gets. Despite the euphony wrapping around us and the sea of bodies parting for him, we’re back in our bubble, just the two of us.

Time suspends as the toes of his shoes touch mine.

“Hi.” I smile.

“Hi.” His hands cup the sides of my face, pulling me to him.

I fall, I fall so fast I don’t even see it coming.

His soul curls around my own, embracing me, melting into me.

I feel him everywhere, in every single nerve in my body, in the blood that pumps through me, in my head, on my lips.

His mouth devours mine and the crowd goes absolutely wild.

Hypnos thrashes against the drums, the beat matching the pace of my heart.

His fingers thread through my hair, tightening, pulling the strands from my scalp, but feeling him in any capacity is more than I could have hoped for. I relish his every touch, his suffocating kiss. I let him steal my breath away just to replenish it with his own.

“I didn’t think you’d want to see me again.” He murmurs against my lips.

Forgetting the crowd, I jump him. My legs wrap around his waist as my arms cradle his head and I use my tongue to respond to his voiced fear.

“I’ve missed you. I missed my best friend.” He breathes between kisses.

I pull back to find his eyes and that’s when I see him; Oliver, my best friend.

The realization hits me dead center in the chest, forcing a small gasp to escape my lips.

I’m in love with Oliver, the kid down the street from me, the boy that I did everything with growing up.

The boy that I overlooked for a fantasy I would never live .

“I love you, Oliver Matthews. I wish I had seen it that day in the woods and I’m so sorry I didn’t, but I see it now. I see it in the man you’ve become, I see it in whoever you will be. I love you so damn much.”