Chapter Forty Six.

Chapter Forty Six.
Jhelani's POV: 

The boys were in my house and to be honest, I kind of loved it. I've been busy with my shift at the hospital and was genuinely stressed out to the core. They brought take outs which made it easy for me, especially since I don't have to cook.

Jace was in my kitchen, arranging the take outs. According to him, I've stressed myself too much and needed as much rest as I could get.

I inhaled the aroma of the food in front of me. “OMG! This smells amazing. I can't wait to dive in, especially since I've been eating cup noodles for the past week.”

Damon brows arched. “What do you mean by you're eating cup noodles? That's not very healthy,” he scolded.

I bit down on my bottom lip, mentally scolding myself for letting that slip. I should've been more careful especially since Damon acts like such a dad sometimes.

I forced a smile, trying to mask the annoyance I felt. “It's nothing really. I've just been so busy at the hospital and I need to catch up on alot.”

His jaw clenched. “That doesn't mean you should be skipping meals and eating unhealthy. You're working in a hospital but you can't even prioritise your own health. How can you take care of your patients if you're setting yourself up to become a patient too by not caring for yourself?”

His words were making me annoyed that I pouted. Jace and Kian had to step in. “Can we just have a peaceful dinner together?” Jace said laughing. 

I huffed, averting my gaze from Damon and back to my food. “I think I'm just going to eat in my room instead.”

Kian held my hand, before I could make it out of the sitting room. “But that would mean you're not eating with us,” he pointed out.

I snatched my arm from him. “That's kind of the point, and I want to be away from someone who's acting like such a dad.” I rolled my eyes so hard it almost balled into my head. 

I walked away, with Kian and Jace's voices fading in the background. I shut the door to my room, and sat on the ground realizing that I might have overreacted.

I knew that he was just watching out for me after all, but he could've said it nicely rather than speaking to me like I'm a child.

A soft knock on the door disrupted my thoughts .“I'm not in the mood to see anyone right now.”

The door opened slightly despite my protests.

Jace peeked his head through the small opening of the door, his eyes meeting mine cautiously before he stepped in fully. I groaned and turned away, clutching my pillow like it was some sort of barrier between us.

“I said I didn’t want to see anyone, Jace,” I muttered, not even trying to hide the irritation in my tone.

He closed the door quietly behind him and leaned against it, completely unfazed by my words. “Yeah, I heard you,” he said casually, “but I also heard how upset you sound, so I decided to ignore that part.”

I turned my head to glare at him. “Wow, that’s really nice. Ignoring people’s boundaries now? You must be proud.”

He chuckled softly, walking over and crouching down beside me on the floor. “I’m not ignoring your boundaries. I’m just… bending them a little.” He smiled playfully, and I rolled my eyes, trying not to let his charm disarm me.

“Jace, please. I’m not in the mood for your jokes,” I sighed, my voice coming out softer than I intended.

“Yeah, I know.” He tilted his head slightly, studying me for a moment. “You just looked like you needed company. Damon didn’t mean to come off that harsh, you know. He’s just bad at expressing concern without sounding like someone’s...Dad.” 

I let out a small laugh, even though I tried not to. “You noticed that too, huh?”

He grinned, clearly satisfied that he got a reaction out of me. “Everyone notices it. He probably lectures his mirror every morning.”

I laughed again, shaking my head. “You’re so stupid.”

“Hey, I’m not stupid. I just happen to have a gift for making grumpy people smile,” he teased, leaning closer until his shoulder brushed mine.

I nudged him lightly. “I wasn’t grumpy. I was just… a little annoyed.”

He raised a brow. “Annoyed enough to storm off and hide in your room like a teenager?”

I glared at him, but the corners of my lips betrayed me, twitching upward. “Okay, fine. Maybe a little grumpy.”

He chuckled and took that as his victory. For a moment, we just sat there quietly. The tension in my chest slowly eased, and the silence between us felt warm, almost comforting.

After a while, his tone shifted slightly—softer, more serious. “Jhelani… I’ve been thinking.”

I looked at him curiously. “That sounds dangerous,” I joked, trying to lighten the mood again.

He smirked, but it faded quickly. “I mean it. I’ve been worried about you. About everything that’s been going on lately. The long shifts at the hospital, you living here alone, Damon’s weird behavior lately… It's a lot.”

I frowned, picking at the edge of my blanket. “I can handle myself, Jace. I’ve been doing fine.”

“I know you can,” he said gently. “But just because you can doesn’t mean you have to.” He paused, meeting my eyes with that quiet intensity that always made me forget how to breathe for a second. “I want you to move in with me.”

My heart did a little jump, and I blinked at him in surprise. “What?”

He smiled faintly, though his eyes stayed serious. “You heard me. I want you to stay with me. At least for a while. You’d be safer there, and I’d worry less knowing you’re not here by yourself.”

I stared at him, trying to process what he just said. “Jace… that’s— I mean, you can’t just—”

“Why not?” he asked simply. “You already spend most of your time with us anyway. This just makes it easier. And safer.”

“Safer from what?” I asked, narrowing my eyes. “You sound like Damon now.”

He hesitated, then forced a small smile. “Let’s just say… it’s better not to take chances. Things are getting tense, and I don’t want you caught in the middle of it.”

I studied his face for a moment, trying to read him. “You’re not telling me something,” I said quietly.

He looked away, running a hand through his hair. “There’s a lot going on, Jhelani. Stuff I can’t explain right now. But please… just trust me on this. Let me look out for you.”

My chest tightened at the way he said it—so sincere, almost pleading. I hated how much that look in his eyes affected me.

“Jace…” I started, my voice trailing off.

He reached out and took my hand gently. “Just think about it, okay? I’m not forcing you. I just— I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

I sighed, my fingers tightening around his without meaning to. “You’re making it really hard for me to say no, you know that?”

He grinned faintly, relief softening his features. “Good. That means I’m doing something right.”

I shook my head and laughed quietly. “You’re impossible.”

“Yeah,” he said, smiling wider this time. “But I’m your kind of impossible.”

That made my heart skip again, and I quickly looked away before he noticed. “I’ll think about it,” I said finally.

“Fair enough,” he replied softly, standing up and giving my hand one last squeeze. “Just don’t take too long to decide, okay?”

When he left the room, I sat there for a while, staring at the door. My heart was still racing, and even though I didn’t want to admit it, the thought of staying with him–with them didn’t sound so bad.

Not bad at all.