Chapter 109 Pretty possessive
Nathan paused. Then his face softened. “Aww… someone’s missing me already?”
Before Lucas could react, Nathan pulled him into a tight hug. “That’s sweet,” Nathan said warmly. “I’ll miss you too.”
Lucas hugged him back, though his chest felt strangely heavy.
Nathan pulled away and grinned.
“Don’t worry. Anytime I get up to three days off, I’ll fly back and spend time with you, hmm.”
He added jokingly, “That is, if Alex allows me to get close to you. He can be pretty possessive sometimes.”
Lucas blinked. “Really?”
Nathan laughed. “Oh yeah, he definitely can be.” Then his tone softened. “But he’s a good man, Luc. A really good lover. If you can tolerate his stubborn side, he’ll walk to the moon for you.”
Nathan closed his last suitcase and stood up, glancing around the apartment.
A nostalgic smile crossed his face. “You know,” he said thoughtfully, “The rent for this place expires in three months.”
Lucas looked up.
Nathan shrugged. “If you want to keep the apartment after that, talk to Alex.”
Lucas frowned slightly. “Why Alex?”
Nathan grabbed a bag and slung it over his shoulder.
“Because he’s the one who’s been handling the rent.”
Lucas smiled softly and pulled Nathan into another tight hug.
“I love you, Nat,” he said quietly. “I’m already missing you.”
Nathan laughed and hugged him back just as tightly.
“I love you more, buddy. Take care of yourself, okay?” He pulled back and gave Lucas a playful but serious look. “And if he makes you cry again, call me.”
Lucas scoffed lightly. “He wouldn’t dare try that again,” he said with a sly smile. “I’ve already devised a way to punish him if he misbehaves.”
Nathan’s eyebrows shot up in amused surprise. “Oh? Now that sounds interesting.”
Lucas only shrugged mysteriously while Nathan chuckled and shook his head. “Alright, I like the sound of that. Take care, buddy.”
Lucas grabbed one of Nathan’s bags and helped him carry it out of the apartment. The Kornelly transport bus was already waiting, its engine humming quietly.
The driver loaded the luggage into the back while Nathan turned to Lucas one last time.
They stood there for a brief moment, both smiling, both trying not to show the heaviness of the goodbye.
Nathan patted Lucas’s shoulder.
“Feel free to use my car,” he said casually. “I’ll have it shipped over once I’m settled in.”
Lucas nodded. “Okay.”
Nathan climbed into the vehicle and leaned out the window.
“Don’t forget to call me!”
Lucas raised a hand and waved.
“Safe flight!”
The vehicle slowly pulled away.
Lucas stood there on the sidewalk, watching until the bus disappeared at the end of the street.
The quiet that followed felt strangely loud. After a moment, he turned and walked back into the apartment. The door closed behind him with a soft click. Silence greeted him immediately. The place suddenly felt empty, too empty.
Lucas glanced around the living room. Only one couch, one coffee mug on the table. One pair of shoes by the door.
Nathan’s laughter, his random cooking experiments, the constant chatter, all gone in just a few hours.
Lucas sighed and dropped onto the couch.
“So quiet…” he murmured.
Just then, his phone buzzed on the table. It was Alex.
Lucas stared at the screen as it continued vibrating. His jaw tightened slightly. For a moment, he considered answering but then changed his mind. He turned the phone over and placed it on the table.
If Alex wanted to play childishly, he would play it better than anyone else.
Meanwhile, unknown to Lucas, the moment Alex returned from his meeting and stepped into the office, something immediately felt wrong. The silence was the first thing that struck him.
His eyes swept across the office until they landed on the tray with the fruits he had asked Judy to arrange for Lucas earlier. They were untouched.
A thin line formed on Alex’s lips.
“Lucas?” he called casually, expecting him to answer from somewhere nearby but no sound came.
His brows creased in worry. He checked the bathroom but it was empty.
“Maybe he went to the kitchen,” Alex muttered under his breath.
Alex quickly crossed over to his desk and connected the security system to his computer. With practiced ease, he switched on the surveillance monitor.
Alex leaned forward, fingers moving swiftly across the controls as he navigated through the cameras toward the kitchen. The kitchen appeared on the screen but Lucas was not there.
His brows knitted together. He began scanning other sections of the building but Lucas was nowhere to be seen.
A sharp uneasiness settled in Alex’s chest. Without wasting another second, he rewound the footage. The timeline rolled backward until the moment Lucas stepped out of the office.
Alex’s gaze sharpened. He watched as Lucas walked down the hallway slowly, looking distracted, before disappearing through the exit doors.
Alex paused the video, jaw tightening slightly. “Where did you go?” he murmured.
He resumed playback to the outside camera and captured Lucas stepping onto the street before raising his hand to stop a cab. Within seconds, he climbed inside and the vehicle drove away.
Alex leaned back in his chair, exhaling slowly. “So you left, hmm.”
His eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
“Could it be that he went home?”
Curiosity flickered in his gaze. Without hesitation, Alex switched to another surveillance system connected to Nathan’s apartment.
The screen flickered again and then there Lucas was.
Alex’s eyes lit up slightly as he watched Lucas inside Nathan’s room, helping him fold clothes and arrange them neatly into a suitcase.
“Oh, it has happened?” A slow smile crept onto Alex’s lips.
“Well, well…” he murmured in amusement.
“So Jathan already pulled the plug?” His smile deepened. “That was fast and exactly what I needed.”
Alex leaned comfortably against the chair, folding his arms as he continued watching the footage like a private show as the guys moved around packing up.
Then came the hugs. Nathan wrapped Lucas in a tight embrace.
A flicker of jealousy ignited behind Alex’s calm expression.
“Don’t push it, Nathan, that's too lingering,” he murmured coldly but kept watching.
Eventually, Nathan finished packing and dragged one of his bags toward the door, Lucas dragged a suitcase behind him.
They continued until all his luggage was completely arranged into the vehicle.
Then Nathan pulled Lucas into another hug. Alex’s gaze darkened.
That one lasted even longer but at last Nathan left.
Lucas remained standing on the road walk waving until the vehicle was out of sight. For a moment he looked fine, but then his shoulders dropped. The brightness drained from his face as he slowly walked back into the house and sank onto the couch, staring at nothing.
Alex leaned closer to the screen.
His brows furrowed. “Damn it, why does Lucas look sad and lonely?”
Alex’s eyes hardened slightly as a storm of thoughts ran through his mind.
“Why is Lucas like that?” he muttered aloud again.
His gaze remained fixed on the screen. “Is he missing him already?” The thought irritated him more than he expected. His fingers tightened slowly around the armrest.
“Did he feel something for him?”