Chapter 42 THE NEXT STEP
Elias
Elias woke up to Alex packing boxes in his dorm room.
It was mid-August. Summer classes were done. The fall semester starts in two weeks. And Alex was officially moving in.
“You’re up early,” Elias said from the doorway.
Alex jumped. Dropped the book he was holding. “You scared me.”
“Sorry. Brought coffee.”
“You’re perfect.”
Des was already there, sorting through clothes. He looked up when Elias walked in.
“Morning. Ready to officially cohabitate?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” Elias said.
“That’s the spirit. Very romantic.”
They’d been planning this for weeks. What to keep. What to donate. How to fit Alex’s entire dorm life into Elias’s apartment without it feeling cramped.
Turned out Alex didn’t have much. Clothes. Books. His laptop. Some photos. Everything he owned fit into six boxes and two suitcases.
“Is this really all of it?” Elias asked.
“I travel light.” Alex taped up another box. “Most of this is books anyway.”
“Good. We’ll need the shelf space.”
Sana showed up at noon with her car. Between her SUV and Elias’s sedan, they could move everything in two trips.
“This is really happening,” Alex said, staring at the empty dorm room.
“Having second thoughts?” Des asked.
“No. Just. It’s weird. I lived here for three years.”
“And now you’re living somewhere better. With someone better. It’s called progress.”
They loaded the cars. Said goodbye to the RA. Drove across town to Elias’s apartment.
Their apartment is now.
Unpacking took all afternoon. Alex’s clothes went in the closet next to Elias’s. His books filled the empty spaces on the shelves. His toothbrush stayed in the bathroom where it had been living for weeks anyway.
By evening, the apartment looked different. More full. More lived in. More like two people shared the space instead of one.
“It looks good,” Sana said, surveying the living room.
“It looks crowded,” Alex said.
“It looks like home,” Elias corrected.
After Des and Sana left, promising to come back for a proper housewarming party, Elias and Alex stood in the middle of the living room.
“So,” Alex said.
“So.”
“We live together now.”
“We do.”
“That’s terrifying.”
“Little bit.”
They ordered pizza and ate it on the couch. Their couch. In their apartment. Using their dishes.
Everything felt heavier with the word “ours” attached to it.
“What if we drive each other crazy?” Alex asked.
“We probably will sometimes.”
“What if I’m a terrible roommate?”
“Then we’ll figure it out. Alex, stop catastrophizing.”
“I’m not.”
“You are. I can see it happening. You’re already thinking of seventeen ways this could go wrong.”
Alex put down his pizza. “What if you realize living with me is different than dating me? What if I’m annoying? What if I leave dishes in the sink or forget to buy milk or talk too much in the morning?”
“Then I’ll remind you about dishes. Buy milk myself. And learn to love your morning talking.”
“You say that now.”
“I mean it now. And I’ll mean it in six months when you’ve left dishes in the sink for the third time and I’m annoyed but still love you.”
Alex looked at him. “You really think this will work?”
“I really do. Do you?”
“I want to. I’m just scared.”
“That’s allowed. I’m scared too.”
“Of what?”
“That I’ll mess this up. That I’ll be too much like Carter said. That you’ll get tired of me.”
“You’re not too much. And I won’t get tired of you.”
“You can’t promise that.”
“Yes, I can. I’m promising it right now.”
They finished eating. Cleaned up together. Elias washed. Alex dried. They moved around each other in the small kitchen like they’d been doing this for years instead of hours.
That night they went to bed in their bedroom. In their bed. Under their sheets.
Everything is shared. Everything is ours.
Elias pulled Alex close. “First official night.”
“How does it feel?”
“Perfect. Scary. Good.”
“All at once?”
“All at once.”
Alex pressed his face into Elias’s neck. “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
“Thank you for being patient with me. For letting me be scared.”
“Always.”
They fell asleep tangled together. The apartment was quiet around them, the kind of quiet that felt earned rather than empty. The city sounds outside were familiar and safe, distant traffic and the occasional voice drifting up like a reminder that the world was still moving.
When Elias woke up at 3 AM, Alex was still asleep. Hair is messy on the pillow. Breathing even and peaceful, one hand curled into Elias’s shirt like he had fallen asleep holding on and never let go.
This was real. Alex lives here now. Not visiting, not staying over, not halfway between leaving and coming back. Here. With him. They were building something together, piece by piece, night by night, turning this small apartment into a life.
Elias’s phone buzzed on the nightstand. He grabbed it before it could wake Alex.
Unknown number. Probably spam.
He almost ignored it. But something made him open the message.
His stomach dropped.
Unknown: Hey. I know I said I’d leave you alone but I can’t stop thinking about you. Can we please talk? I made a mistake. I miss you. - Carter
Elias stared at the message. His heart is pounding. His hands started to shake.
He’d blocked Carter’s number. How was this even getting through?
Another message came through.
Unknown: I heard you stayed. That you turned down the program. Was it because of me? Because I’ll come back if you want. We can try again.
Elias set down his phone. Pressed his palms against his eyes.
Not this. Not now. Not when everything was finally good.
Next to him, Alex stirred. “Elias? You okay?”
“Yeah. Go back to sleep.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Just work email. It’s fine.”
But it wasn’t fine. Carter was texting again. From a new number. Still not letting go.
Elias stared at the screen, a dull weight settling in his chest. He had blocked him. He had moved on. Or at least tried to.
Another message buzzed in. Carter was still reaching, still refusing to disappear.
Elias tightened his grip on the phone, not answering, not ready to wake Alex, just wishing it would stop.
And didn’t know what to do about it.