Chapter 95 Too Close to Control
Luna’s POV
I shouldn’t have gone, because Ethan said not to be alone, and my instincts whispered the same thing. But here I was. Standing behind the bleachers and waiting.
The late afternoon sun stretched shadows across the empty field, turning everything gold and quiet. It looked peaceful and normal. Like nothing bad had ever happened here, or like I hadn’t almost been kissed by one person… while running from another.
My chest tightened, as I wrapped my arms around myself, and exhaled slowly. “Bad habit.”
I stiffened. I didn’t need to turn, because I already knew it was Kai. “You sneak up on people for fun now?” I said, forcing my voice steady.
Then I heard footsteps slow and measured. He came into view, with his hands in his pockets, and his expression was calm…too calm. “I called your name twice,” he said.
“I didn’t hear you.”
That was a lie, because I felt him before he spoke. That same pull and that same awareness under my skin. It hadn’t gone away. If anything…
It was stronger. “You came anyway,” he added.
I swallowed. “You said we needed to talk.”
His gaze held mine. “We do.”
Silence stretched between us, it was neither awkward nor light. It was heavy and charged. Like the air knew something was about to happen before we did.
I hated that my heart started racing. Hated that part of me was… relieved to see him. “You look better,” I said carefully.
“I am better.” Too quick and too clean, then I stepped back slightly. “I didn’t say healed.”
Something flickered across his face, then it was gone in a second. “You don’t trust me,” he said.
Not accusing. Just… stating it, then I hesitated. That was enough.
Kai exhaled slowly, running a hand through his hair. “I deserve that,” he admitted.
That threw me off, then I frowned slightly. “That was easy.”
“What did you expect?” he asked.
“A fight.”
A faint smile tugged at his lips. “Not today.” There was something about that answer… it didn’t sit right. “Then what do you want?” I asked.
His eyes softened. Or at least… looked like they did. “You,” he said simply.
My breath caught. because that was too direct, too honest and too….
No. No, something was off. “You don’t get to say things like that after what happened,” I said quickly.
“I know.”
“Do you?”
“Yes.” He stepped closer and my body reacted instantly, with my pulse jumping and my breath catching. Everything in me was screaming to move..But I didn’t. “Then prove it,” I said, my voice quieter now.
His gaze darkened slightly. “How?”
“By not acting as if nothing changed.”
Silence stretched and then…. “You want me to admit I almost lost control?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“I did.” He said.
The words landed heavy and real. But still, it was not enough. “And?” I pushed.
His jaw tightened slightly. “And it scared me,” he said.
That. That felt real and for a second, I saw it again. The crack and the hesitation. The part of him that wasn’t perfectly composed. And my chest ached. “I don’t want to hurt you,” he added, softer now.
“You already did,” I whispered.
The words hung between us sharp, painful, and honest. Kai didn’t look away.
“I know,” he said.
And this time… There was no defense and no excuse. Just truth and that hurt more than anything else. “Then why are you here?” I asked.
His eyes searched mine. “Because I can’t stay away from you.”
My breath hitched. There it was again. That pull and that dangerous, confusing, and undeniable pull. It made no sense. It shouldn’t exist. After everything… But it did. “I should walk away,” I said.
“You should,” he agreed.
I blinked. “You’re not going to stop me?”
“No.” He replied.
That made it worse. “Why?”
“Because if I try,” he said quietly, “you’ll run faster.”
He wasn’t wrong. And he knew it and that scared me. “How do you always know what I’m going to do?” I asked.
“I don’t,” he said.
Then, softer…. “I just know you.” Something twisted in my chest, because part of me believed that still. Despite everything. “Luna…” The way he said my name was low and careful. Almost like it mattered. Too much, then my guard slipped. Just a little and he saw it. Of course he did.
He took another step closer. Now there was barely any space between us.
Too close. Way too close, I could feel his warmth, I could hear his breathing, and see every small detail in his face. “You should go,” I whispered.
But I didn’t move. Neither did he. “Say it again,” he murmured.
My heart slammed against my ribs. “Go.”
“Like you mean it.”
I swallowed. “I…”
My voice failed. Because I didn’t mean it, and he knew. Then a slow, knowing look crossed his face. It was dangerous and not aggressive. Just… certain. “You don’t want me to go,” he said.
My pulse spiked. “That’s not true.”
“Then move.”
I didn’t. Didn’t even try and suddenly, that small distance between us disappeared and his hand lifted slowly. Not grabbing and not forcing.
Just… hovering near my face. Giving me time to stop him, to pull away, and to choose. I didn’t. Then his fingers brushed lightly against my cheek.
I felt electric and my breath caught. Everything inside me went still. Too still. It was like the world had paused just for this moment. “This is a bad idea,” I whispered.
“I know.”
“Then why are you…”
“Because I want to,” he said, which was honest, raw, and too real.
My heart betrayed me. Leaning into his touch just slightly. Just enough, and that was all it took. His gaze dropped to my lips slowly and deliberately.
Heat rushed through me, it was confusing and wrong. And yet… I didn’t stop. Didn’t stop him and didn’t stop anything.
“Luna…”
My name sounded different this time. It was softer, not controlled, and did not sound calculated. Just… him. Or something that felt like him.
And that was the most dangerous part, because it made me forget everything.
His hand slid slightly, and fingers brushed along my jaw. Tilting my face up.
Closer and closer, then my breath hitched. “Kai…”
But I didn’t say stop. I didn’t say anything, and then, his lips were inches from mine. So close I could feel his breath warm, unsteady, and real.
My heart pounded so hard it hurt. This was it. The moment, the line I shouldn’t cross and the one I couldn’t come back from. And yet, I leaned in with just a fraction and just enough to close the distance. And then—“Luna!”
The voice cut through everything. It was sharp and urgent.
Wrong timing and perfect timing. I froze andKai didn’t move. For a second… Neither of us did, it was like we were both deciding whether to ignore it.
To pretend we didn’t hear. But reality crashed back too fast. Too loud. Too real.
I pulled back abruptly, breathing hard and my heart racing.
Everything shattered. Ethan stood at the edge of the bleachers, he was watching us and his expression was neither angry nor surprised. It was something worse and knowing. Like he had expected this.
“Seriously?” he said quietly.
The word hit harder than a shout. I stepped back again and put space between Kai and me. Too late. Way too late. “This isn’t what it looks like,” I started.
But even I didn’t believe that. Then Kai’s expression had gone still again.
Controlled and cold. That switch and that shift. It was back. And I noticed it now. Really noticed it and Ethan did too. His gaze flicked between us sharp and assessing. “You need to stay away from him,” he said.
“I don’t take orders from you,” I shot back automatically.
“You should,” he replied.
My chest tightened. “Why?”
He looked at Kai and then back at me. And said ....“Because whatever you felt just now?”
“It wasn’t just you.”
Silence dropped like a bomb and I felt my stomach twist. “What does that mean?” I asked.
Ethan didn’t look away. “It means,” he said slowly, “you don’t know where your feelings end…”
Then his gaze shifted to Kai. “…and where his influence
begins.”
The words hit hard. Too hard, because suddenly in that moment, that pull and that need, didn't feel mine entirely anymore.
And that terrified me.