Chapter 72 SHUTTING EVERYTHING

Chapter 72 SHUTTING EVERYTHING
RACHEL
He simply turned and walked away. I shoved at Jay's chest, trying to go after him, but he caught my arm and held me back.
“Hey.”
“Let go, Jae Hyun.” I glared at him.
His grip tightened slightly. “Don't go.”
“What? That's none of your business.”
“Yeah, it's not.” His eyes stayed on mine. “But it doesn't make sense for you to run after him after what he just saw.”
He was annoyingly right. And that only made me more annoyed. Because for one stupid second, I actually thought I could go after Thane. But what was I supposed to say to him? It wasn't what it looked like? Except it was.
I jerked my arm free from Jay's grip. Went quiet for a second before breaking it. “Listen.” I dragged a hand through my hair, lowering my eyes. “Uhm... let's just forget about what happened. It meant nothing.”
“About what?”
I looked at him, then quickly looked away again. “The kiss. It just happened.”
“Oh?” He nodded slowly, his expression flattening. “Let me get this straight. I kissed you, you kissed me back, and now you want me to forget it happened?”
The kitchen fell silent again. I couldn't bring myself to look at him.
“You know how I feel about you, Rach.” His voice softened, but somehow that made it worse. “And you want me to pretend I didn't just get the chance to think there could actually be something between us?”
“Jay, please.” My voice came out softer than I expected. “There's really no us. Maybe it means something to you, but it doesn't mean that to me.” I swallowed hard.
“I'm...” I shook my head. “It's not about Thane. There's just a lot going on right now and...” My eyes squeezed shut for a second. “I really shouldn't be dealing with this too. You…”
One finger suddenly pressed against my lips, cutting me off. I froze.
“Trust me, Rach.” His thumb slowly brushed over my lower lip.
“I don't care how long you stay in denial about what you feel.” His gaze remained fixed on mine. “I'm not asking you to decide anything tonight.” His throat worked as he swallowed.
“Just think about it. That's all I'm asking. Don't force yourself to forget what happened just because you're scared of what it might mean.”
My chest tightened.
“I'm willing to wait.” He lowered his hand. “I'll go in now. If you ever decide you want to talk about this...” His eyes held mine for another second. “I'll be waiting.”
With that, he leaned closer and pressed a gentle kiss to my forehead. He held my gaze for one brief second before turning and walking away.
I remained there, completely still. My mind was screaming at me to move. To go after Thane. To explain. To fix whatever damage Jay's kiss had just done. But my feet wouldn't move.
Not until I heard Jay's door shut. And somehow, the sound made the whole house feel even quieter.
THANE
The door clicked shut behind me. I stood there for a second, staring at nothing as something painful twisted hard in my chest. I wasn't going to think about what happened back there.
I wouldn't.
Still, when I finally took a step into the room, it felt like I was walking with my head hanging somewhere below my feet. My head throbbed so badly I thought I might turn around and put my fist through the wall behind me.
“You came back?” Nina was sitting up on the bed.
I didn't respond.
She exhaled sharply. “I'm sorry about tonight...” Her voice softened. “Everything... I regret it.”
Still, I said nothing. I walked past her and dropped onto the sofa, letting my body sink into it. I closed my eyes and swallowed the heavy lump lodged in my throat. For a few seconds, I just sat there. Then everything else faded.

My alarm went off at six in the morning. My hand lazily slipped into my pocket, fumbling for my phone to kill the fucking noise. The bright screen illuminated my face as I swiped it open. A message from Simon Adams appeared immediately.
Adams: Don't miss the flight today. We had a deal.
I stared at it for a second before shutting off the screen with a frustrated sigh. I dragged myself to my feet, walked over to my wardrobe, and pulled out a gray blazer and a white shirt to go with it. I didn't bother thinking about what I was wearing. I just needed to leave.
I headed into the bathroom and turned on the shower. Warm water poured over me, but it did absolutely nothing to ease the ache from last night. I was good at pretending things didn't happen. I'd done it my whole life. But this time, the ache in my chest wouldn't let me. It reminded me of everything every damn second.
After shaving, I stood in front of the mirror for a little longer than I should have. The truth was, part of the reason I wanted to leave this early was so I wouldn't run into her. I couldn't bear looking at Rachel right now. Not when one look at her would make me want to forget everything she said. Or do something fucking stupid just to make her stay.
I turned off the faucet with more force than necessary and shoved the bathroom door open. Something hard collided with my chest.
“Aw!” Nina stumbled back, rubbing the spot she'd just hit.
I barely moved. “You okay?” I finally asked, my voice flat.
She looked up at me, still wincing from the impact. “Yeah.” Her voice was unusually quiet. Too quiet for Nina.
Be it guilt or whatever it was, something made her stare at me with hesitation. I didn't care enough to figure it out. By the time she stepped out of the bathroom, I was already ready to leave.
“Going already?”
“Yeah.” I answered quickly, not sparing her a glance as I grabbed my car key from where I'd dropped it the night before.
“I... I fixed it already. The post.”
I glanced at her for a second and nodded. Then I walked out without a word. I passed Rachel's door without stopping, without even allowing myself a second thought. I stormed down the stairs and headed straight for the door. The cold metal of the handle felt almost too cold beneath my palm. Like walking out that door meant shutting everything that mattered to me behind it.
The second I got into the car, I started the engine and sped out of the driveway into the quiet street.