Page 62 of The Casualty of Us (Philosophies of the Heart Duet #1)

Chapter Thirty-Two

I give up by the time nine thirty rolls around, and there are still three unanswered messages staring back at me.

The first one being a check-in when he didn’t show up to dinner with everyone, and Ollie continued to shoot me those reproachful looks throughout the whole thing.

The second one I shot off when I got back to my dorm, asking if he had fallen asleep or something, before promptly stubbing my toe and yelling at Marley.

Not liking the advice she was spouting one bit, probably because it struck a little too close to home for my liking, her words looping through my head since then right along with Hayes’s.

“Everyone has an Achilles’ heel, O, most of us just aren’t stupid enough to fall in love with ours.”

I hadn’t reacted well to that. Still reading her the riot act over the use of that particular four-letter word while shooting off the third…resorting to the most shameful question mark of ghosted souls everywhere.

Giving him approximately five minutes to reply before deciding I’m not only going to have to take extreme measures, but I’m also going to have to take them to him tonight.

Because this is a new shade of Hayes, and my instincts are screaming at me that I pushed him to it.

That I need to fix it if I can before we start arming the battlements and going back to some version of war like last year.

Knowing I’m not going to be getting any sleep until I do, and…

I just don’t like it. The idea of him upset.

It’s why I keep making those payments, I guess.

Fucking nepo rock star baby.

I swipe Ollie’s extra keycard across their door, pulling it open and sliding through before anyone can catch sight of me in the hall.

The hoodie and shorts I’m wearing are not exactly doing much to hide that I’m a girl, but I pulled the hood over my head to at least make sure Kyler stood less of a chance of catching sight of me.

Very thoughtful of me.

Just like the ice cream I hauled ass over to grab from the mess hall before they closed. Even more gracious, really, considering that it involved running.

I close the door with a sigh and turn, coming to an immediate stop when I find Ollie staring back at me from the couch—both of us blinking at each other and knowing I’m not here for him.

A few guitar chords float through the air, and surprise fills me at the sound that’s never been here before but that’s definitely coming from behind Hayes’s closed door.

I clear my throat, shifting my feet from side to side before whispering, “How is he?”

“Not good,” Ollie snorts quietly, playing with the phone in his hands. “Especially since Kyler asked if we could grab lunch sometime, and I kind of had to say yes.”

“What?” I scowl. “Why the hell did you do that?”

“Because it was either that or listen to him go on about how we should have no hard feelings while Hayes was literally in the shower next to us.”

My mouth pops open at the mental picture, and I just barely fight the urge to stomp my foot like a toddler about the whole thing before cursing. “Fuck.”

“This is a mess.” He shakes his head at me with that same reproach in his eyes. “And they’re going to be at each other’s throats all season because—”

“This is not my fault,” I cut in.

“No,” he agrees, pausing before nodding at Hayes’s door and delivering bluntly, “But that is.”

“I know.” I swallow, still trying to figure out where I fucked up so bad apparently. “So I’m just going to…” Shifting on my feet another couple of times, I clench the takeout bag in my hand while finishing awkwardly, “Go in there now.”

Weird.

“Right.” He stands quickly. “I’m going to go be somewhere else.”

“Okay.”

“Okay.”

I turn to head to Hayes’s room when his quiet voice stops me, making me glance back.

“Hey, O.” The expression on his face is a little torn but a lot thoughtful as he tells me, “Remember that most people aren’t me, they don’t automatically know what you’re thinking, okay?”

“Okay,” I whisper, brows falling for a second before I give him a little grin that he returns with his crooked one. “Night, big brother.”

“Whatever.” He rolls his eyes, turning to head toward his room while calling back quietly, “Love you too, baby sister.”

A few more guitar chords fill the air, and I take a deep breath before reaching for the handle and pushing the door open.

Barely managing a single step in before coming to stop yet again at the sight that greets me as my stomach flips with nerves.

Because he is gorgeous and shirtless and wearing those fucking sweatpants again, but… he also hasn’t looked up.

Is pointedly ignoring me, actually, as he lies in bed and picks a few more strings on the guitar.

“Hey.” I clear my throat and close the door behind me before lifting the bag at my side. “I brought ice cream.”

His fingers finally slow to a stop, chest rising before he exhales quietly. “I’m not in a good mood tonight, Ophelia.”

“I know,” I mutter, trying not to frown while taking another couple of steps. “Hence the ice cream.”

A short scoff leaves him, and he picks a few more chords while I close the rest of the distance to the bed.

I set the ice cream down on the nightstand before scooting myself onto the edge of the mattress and pushing the hood off my head.

Staring at him as he continues to pick at the strings while humming under his breath and watching as his face falls a little more with each one until they start to transform into some kind of melody.

And the tune is clearly raw but pretty enough to keep me silent until he eventually stops with a sigh. “What are you doing here, O?”

“I didn’t like the way we left things today.”

“And?”

His eyes finally lift to mine, and the frustration in them has me fighting some more nerves while admitting softly, “And…I just wanted to fix it.”

“Fix it?” he echoes tightly, and I see his hand clench around the guitar for a beat. “How do you plan on fixing it, Ophelia?”

Well, I thought we’d start with some ice cream and go from there, but apparently I was wrong on that front.

I swallow down the witty retort, trying for diplomacy instead. “It might help if I knew what happened or what I did—”

“Jesus Christ.” A laugh falls from his lips that’s anything but funny, and he drops his head back against the headboard suddenly. “You really might drive me fucking crazy.”

“Hey, now.” I scowl. “That’s not fair—”

“No.” His head snaps back up, eyes immediately slitting.

“What’s not fair is drunk dialing someone, then acting like it’s the worst thing in the world when they get there.

” I blink at him, barely having a second to process before he sits up.

“Or how about messing around with them and then never talking about it?”

“That’s not all on—”

“Or how about when you introduce me as just Hayes and then fucking plant yourself on my desk two seconds later?”

My mouth pops open, shock flitting through me as he continues to hold my gaze captive. The little flecks of gold all lit up now but not in the way I want them to be for me.

“Ophelia, you’re sending me so many mixed signals that I’m surprised my head hasn’t exploded.”

“I don’t mean to.” I frown, my stomach rapidly moving from a flip to a fall at the way his face goes hard. “I’m not sure what you want me to do differently.”

“I want you to call this what it is for once,” he practically growls, making terror sink its hooks into me immediately at the implications. “That’d be a great start.”

“I can’t do that,” I whisper, seeing the hurt that fills his eyes and correcting quickly. “I just mean, not now—”

“Is this about the Josey thing still?”

“No, it’s not about that.” My brows fall with the statement, and he gives me a doubtful look. “I mean, maybe a little, but not the majority of it.”

“Then what—”

“What do you think happens when we step outside these walls?” His face turns confused at the question, and this time I’m the one scoffing.

“What do you think happens if I say, ‘Oh hey, Kyler, meet Hayes. He got me off last week, and we like to cuddle sometimes so go away.’” A humorless giggle bursts past my lips, part out of nervousness because— “Much less introduce you as my boyfriend, which is what I think you’re suggesting.

” His gaze flashes with something that looks a hell of a lot like possession, and I push at him because of it. “So what happens, Hayes? Huh?”

All he gives me is a lift of his chin, though, before setting the guitar down beside the bed and leaning back again to cross his arms. Settling in.

“Fine.” I narrow my eyes at him. “I’ll tell you what happens: one person tells another person and another until eventually the whole world finds out that you’re more than just my brother’s roommate.

” Something between a laugh and gasp leaves me this time, and his nostrils flare.

“What do you think happens the second we step outside those gates and someone notices that America’s thirty million dollar girl is dating the prince of rock? ”

His face twists at the term, and he snaps, “Don’t call me that.”

“Well, it’s true.” I laugh emptily. “I’m the oddity here, but you…

you were made for it.” A harsh breath leaves me, and I immediately suck in another to get to the point.

“He slammed into the side of Jack’s car for daring to get in his way of contacting me.

” His face falls at that, and my throat tightens up with it, recognizing that it’s finally clicking for him now.

“He’s made it very clear that he considers me his, so what do you think he would do to someone that was actually a threat to that? ”

His brows shoot down sharply before he swallows. “I don’t care.”

Fuck. “ I do.”