Chapter 113 A Peaceful Life

Chapter 113 A Peaceful Life

Chloe's POV

I carefully took the phone from Lester, my voice trembling. "Lucas?"

Half a second of silence on the other end.

Hearing my voice, Lucas sounded utterly disbelieving. "Chloe?"

The moment I opened my mouth, tears fell.

All the emotions I'd desperately held back completely shattered the instant I heard his voice. I clutched the phone, my shoulders shaking uncontrollably, even my breathing ragged.

"Why are you doing this to me?" I couldn't stop crying. "Why did you leave me? Why didn't you contact me? Not a single message, not one call. Lucas, do you have any idea what these past few days have been like for me?"

Lester sat nearby in complete silence. So quiet it felt like I was the only person in the room.

The other end went silent for a long time. All I could hear was his shallow breathing mixed with faint static.

After what felt like forever, Lucas's voice came through. "It's protocol."

I laughed through my tears. They fell even harder. There it was again. Cold. Brief. Unfeeling.

"Protocol?" My fingers gripped the phone so tightly they ached, my voice breaking. "Then what about all my worry these past days? All those sleepless nights—what do they count for?"

He didn't interrupt. My eyes burned, my nose stung, and days of accumulated hurt came pouring out.

"I've been terrified something happened to you every single day. I've been waiting for any word from you. Delta just keeps brushing me off with 'classified information.' Not one person will tell me the truth."

"Lucas, I'm not throwing a tantrum. I'm genuinely scared."

"I'm scared you'll end up like Marcus."

"I'm scared that one day someone will knock on my door and tell me you're never coming back."

"I really can't lose you."

After those words, I was crying so hard I could barely make a sound. The other end remained silent.

I closed my eyes. My chest seized with pain, like a hand was squeezing my heart and wouldn't let go.

After a long while, his hoarse, exhausted voice came through. "Just calm down for a second, baby."

I bit my reddened lower lip, tears streaming down unstoppably. "I can't."

"Listen to me." He lowered his voice with that unique quality that could settle me down. "Once I finish dealing with things here, I'll come back to you, okay?"

I gasped for air, my eyes burning and swollen, my whole body trembling beyond control. "How am I supposed to believe you?"

This time, he fell silent again. My heart sank little by little.

I stared down at the carpet pattern, my tears hitting it and spreading into small dark spots.

A few seconds later, I slowly stopped crying, left only with broken, stuttering breaths. "Silence is your answer, isn't it."

"No."

He responded so fast I froze instantly.

His deep exhale came through the phone. "Chloe, I used to never be afraid of dying."

I held the phone, listening quietly.

His voice was low and slow, each word carrying weight.

"I always charged ahead on missions. Life or death didn't matter to me. I had nothing holding me back, no one who could keep me here. Even if things ended badly, I wouldn't look back."

My eyes welled up again.

"But now it's different."

"Now I have someone I want to come back to see."

"I have someone I love."

My breath stopped. Even my fingertips went rigid.

Lester sat on the edge of the sofa, looking down at the floor, deliberately avoiding this tender moment.

Lucas's voice came through the receiver, burning and real. "I want to stay by your side. I want to watch you play piano. I want to see you get mad at me. I want to hold you when you have nightmares in the middle of the night."

"I know if I get hurt, you'll be devastated."

"I know if I go dark, your mind will spiral."

"I can't stand the thought of you suffering."

I wiped away tears roughly with the back of my hand, my throat tight. "Lucas…"

His tone softened considerably. "Take care of yourself first. Once I've handled everything, I'll come find you."

I hurried forward two steps, afraid he'd hang up any second. "Wait."

He paused. "Hmm?"

I gripped the warm phone tightly, my palm slick with cold sweat, my face covered in tear tracks, my heartbeat painfully rapid. "I love you too."

The other end went instantly quiet—so quiet I could clearly hear his suddenly erratic breathing.

Before I could say another word, the call abruptly disconnected.

The cold dial tone sounded. I stood there dazed, all strength drained from my body. My legs gave out and I sank down onto the edge of the bed.

Only then did Lester look up.

He watched me quietly for a few seconds before gently taking the phone from my hand and slipping it into his pocket.

The room stayed silent for a long time.

I lay back on the bed, tears still clinging to my lashes, though the tightness in my chest had eased somewhat.

Lester sat down in the chair. Unusually, there was no joking—his tone was serious. "Honestly, I've never seen feelings this intense between two people."

I turned my head to look at him, my voice still nasal. "Intense?"

"Yeah." He leaned back against the chair, looking up at the ceiling. "Absurdly deep."

I managed a small smile, then felt the sting behind my eyes again. "We've only actually been together for less than a month."

Lester gave a soft laugh. "So what?"

He turned to look at me, his expression sincere. "When two people truly fit together, feelings were never about how long you've been together."

I looked at him without responding.

He was silent for a few seconds, as if hesitating, but finally spoke. "Chloe, you really are a wonderful girl."

I froze slightly.

"Any normal guy…" He smiled with a hint of helplessness. "Would probably fall for you."

My heart sank a little, an inexplicable unease washing over me.

I sat up, hugging my knees as I looked at him. "Don't think too highly of me. I have terrible sides too—you just haven't seen them."

Lester paused, the words on his tongue swallowed back.

"All right." He stood up, brushing off his pants. "Forget I said anything."

He walked toward the door, then stopped halfway and turned back.

"Get a good night's sleep tonight. Don't stay up until dawn clutching your phone again."

I answered quietly, "I'll try."

He raised his hand in acknowledgment and gently closed the door as he left.

After that, the days became extraordinarily calm.

So calm it felt unreal.

I went to school as usual, practiced piano, ate dinner with my family.

Layla came over often, bringing donuts and movie discs, sitting in my room chatting about fresh school gossip.

My dad still flipped through the newspaper at breakfast, casually asking about my practice hours.

I stopped bringing up Lucas on my own.

It was as if, as long as I didn't touch that name, the wound in my heart wouldn't tear open again.

But I knew deep down—I was still waiting. I'd just quietly hidden that hope away.

Lucas told me to live well. I couldn't let him down. I couldn't let him come back to find me haggard and dejected.