Chapter 210

Micah

Okay, listen. I know I say this a lot, but—wow, I’m pretty sure the author (hi) is just slowly turning this book into The Micah Show. And honestly? About time.

But anyway. Let’s rewind.

One minute I was supposed to be Fake Noah. The next, I was gonna hold hands with Lexie Hart—for show, they said… sure, I guess—in a suit that cost more than my rent, and having a totally weird butterfly sensation in my stomach. Butterflies or gas. Could’ve been either. Hard to tell at this point.

Back in the changing room, I’d slipped into Noah’s stupidly good-looking outfit, and the moment I caught my reflection? Yeah. If I were Lexie, I’d date me.

She stepped out in that emerald dress again and—holy mother of good Christian boys—she somehow looked even better the second time around.

“Ready?” she asked.

“No,” I said. “You’re too pretty and I’m having a crisis.”

She rolled her eyes but she blushed too. Don’t think I didn’t see that.

We walked toward the back exit together.

“Alright,” she whispered. “We go straight to the car. You keep the scarf up. No talking if anyone’s looking.”

“Right, right,” I said. “So, what walk should I do? Big macho football swagger? Angry quarterback stomp? Or—wait—should I do Noah’s ‘I’m too emotionally constipated to look left or right’ walk?”

She stared at me. “Micah… just walk normally.”

“But Noah doesn’t walk normally!”

“Oh my God,” she groaned. “Just walk fast. Actually—don’t walk. Run. We don’t know who’s watching.”

“I can run,” I said proudly.

I could not, in fact, run in my cool shoes. But she didn’t need to know that.

We ended up holding hands casually, as planned, until we reached her car—sleek, dark, definitely expensive enough to finance my entire wardrobe for a year—and she unlocked it.

“I’m driving,” she said firmly.

“Taking charge… Hot,” I muttered, climbing into the passenger seat.

She blinked at me. “What?”

“Nothing. Drive.” (Gas or butterflies, I swear.)

She pulled out, and I immediately turned toward her.

“Oh! There’s a place on the way that has the best Oreo milkshakes—”

“It’s one a.m., Micah!”

“They’re open twenty-four hours!”

“No weather for milkshakes yet, Micah.”

“They also have hot cocoa! With whipped cream! And sprinkles!”

She tried so hard not to laugh. Failed miserably.

“You sound like a child,” she said, smiling.

“And yet,” I said, flicking an imaginary fan, “I am still the most fabulous thing in this car.”

She snorted. “Okay… okay. Let’s just get to campus.”

“Fine,” I said dramatically. “But after all this is over—double date.”

She choked. “Double—what?”

“Yeah! Noah and Aiden. You and me.”

“Micah,” she said, red to her ears, “that would be so weird and so inappropriate....”

“Oh, that’s bullshit,” I said. “Now, for real… You kinda had a good time tonight… didn’t you?”

And this time, she took her eyes from the road for a second to give me a real smile. “I kinda did—”

I looked down… OMG… blushing at the almost compliment? No way! Not me… please… Except that maybe I was.

We kept driving, the soft glow of the streetlights passing over her face, the hum of the engine low and steady, and… yeah. It felt weirdly nice. Warm. Safe. Easy.

She laughed at something else I said—I don’t even remember what—and the sound filled the whole car like music. And that was the moment—right when everything felt light and stupid and perfect—that something caught my eye. Not a shadow. Not a vibe. Just… a flash. Like headlights cutting too fast across one of the side streets we passed. Then another flash at the next intersection, same angle, same speed—like the same car was running parallel to us, but on a different road.

I frowned, leaning slightly to peek at the rearview. Nothing. Just empty asphalt behind us. Maybe I imagined it. Maybe it was just a couple different cars. Maybe I was too hopped up on adrenaline, glitter, and future hot cocoa. …Right?

Okay, so, plot twist: unfortunately, I was wrong.

But look at me. I still shone in the end, right? Look. At. Me. Narrator of destiny. Co–main character by force. And very soon… a legend.

(You think I’m joking. I’m not.)

We’d been driving for a couple minutes, the city lights fading behind us, and I suddenly remembered cars have radios.

“Oooh!” I said, smacking the button. “Music! Let’s get some vibes in here.”

Lexi snorted. “Please don’t let it be something chaotic.”

“It’s always chaotic,” I said proudly, scrolling through stations. “But tonight, I’ll be classy.”

I put on a soft acoustic thing. Something gentle. Warm. Comfortable.

And then—against all odds—I got serious.

“Hey… Lex.”

She hummed, eyes on the road.

“I know I’m… me,” I said. “Loud. Dramatic. A clown on Tuesdays. But I just want you to know—I really admire you.”

She blinked, surprised.

“No, seriously,” I continued. “What you did tonight? Helping Noah sneak in to see the dude he actually loves? Then walking into a BDSM club like it was an IKEA? Trusting us? Spending hours with me—which is honestly… exhausting? That’s brave.”

Her mouth softened.

“Micah…”

“No, no, let me be deep for one second before I combust.” I pointed at her. “You’re strong. And you don’t pretend not to be scared. That’s real.”

She was quiet for a moment.

“Your situation isn’t so different from mine,” she said softly. “I saw that tonight. So… I admire you too.”

Oh. Oh no. Feelings. Get them away from me.

I cleared my throat. “Okay wow, enough of that, I need to cause chaos to recover—”

Then she stiffened. “Slow down, dude…!”

“We’re already going slow.”

“No, that car.” Her voice tightened. “That one coming up—”

I turned. It was only but a second.

A pair of headlights. Too close. Too fast. Not slowing down.

“Lex!”

“Oh, God, oh, God—!”

I leaned across her in that second and slammed the horn as the headlights blinded me.

She shoved her foot down on the gas, trying to avoid the inevitable—

The world exploded.

A massive impact hit the back corner behind me—hard enough to crack my spine in half. My body whipped forward so fast my brain didn’t catch up. My face slammed into the dash, my teeth rattling, the air punched out of my lungs.

A scream tore through the car.

Lexi’s. Mine. Both. I couldn’t tell.

Metal shrieked. Glass shattered. The whole car spun, lights spinning with it, like the whole world had been thrown into a blender.

My ears rang—high, sharp, constant—like someone stabbed a fire alarm into my skull.

The car hit something again—a guardrail?—skidded sideways, then finally jerked to a sickening stop.

I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think.

Everything was sideways. First silence. Then, screams.

“Micah—Micah—Micah!” Lexi’s voice cracked somewhere beside me. “Micah, look at me—hey—HEY—”

I tried. My eyes wouldn’t focus.

Warmth slid down my face. Thick. Sticky.

Was that… blood?

“Micah, stay with me,” she pleaded, touching my cheek. “Look at me—don’t close your eyes—don’t—”

The world flickered.

I saw her face—pale, terrified, streaked with tears.

Behind her, through the cracked windshield, a pair of taillights sped away into the dark.

This was it. The thought hit me, then dissolved.

My eyes blurred again. My head felt too heavy. The ringing was all I could hear.

Lexi shook me harder. “MICAH! Please—please—stay with me—don’t—don’t—”

I wanted to answer. Tell her I was fine. Make a joke… But my mouth didn’t work.

Everything dimmed. Softened.

Her voice faded.

Her hands on my face were the last thing I felt.

Then—

Nothing.