CHAPTER 20: CHAPTER 20: THE LINE I SAID I WOULDN’T CROSS (BUT DID)

Aaron’s POV

9:43 PM — Pacing the Battlefield

I couldn’t sleep. Again.

Every step I took in my room creaked like a confession.

I felt Milo’s words still clinging to my shirt like static:

"Someone might find out."

"This is the scariest kind of wrong."

He was right.

But that didn’t stop me from wanting her.

Even after we made our stupid rules. Even after I promised myself this wasn’t going to happen again.

10:02 PM — The Text That Shouldn’t Exist

I stared at my phone.

My fingers hovered over her name.

I typed:

"Are you awake?"

Then I deleted it.

Then typed it again.

Then deleted it.

I flung the phone across the bed like that would solve anything.

Spoiler: It didn’t.

10:19 PM — The Knock

I didn’t send a text.

But someone knocked.

I opened my door slowly.

It was her.

No words.

Just her, in an oversized sweatshirt, no makeup, hair tied up — and looking more dangerous than ever.

"We can’t keep doing this," she whispered.

"We’re not doing anything," I whispered back.

Lies on top of lies.

"I just... wanted to see you," she said.

So we stood in silence for five seconds.

Then ten.

Then thirty.

And that was all it took.

10:22 PM — The Kiss

We didn’t plan it.

We didn’t mean to.

But we kissed.

Again.

And it was worse this time.

Because it felt right.

10:40 PM — The Sound

She pulled away first.

"We can’t," she whispered, breathless. "This isn’t fair to anyone."

"I know," I said, trying to keep myself from grabbing her again.

Then —

A creak.

Outside the door.

We both froze.

"Did you hear that?" she whispered.

I nodded.

Footsteps.

Down the hall.

Not stopping.

Not retreating.

10:43 PM — The Panic

She bolted back to her room, and I slammed my door shut.

My heart was trying to crawl out of my throat.

Was it my dad?

Was it Milo?

Did someone see us?

I pressed my ear to the door.

Silence.

Then the soft click of another door — someone else’s — shutting.

No yelling. No questions. No alarms.

But that didn’t mean we were safe.

That just meant they were waiting.

11:20 PM — Milo’s Message

I checked my phone.

A new text.

From Milo.

"What are you doing?"

I stared at it for five minutes.

He didn’t need to say more.

He knew.

Or he saw.

12:10 AM — The Spiral

I lay in bed, arms behind my head, staring at the ceiling fan spin like a roulette wheel.

How long until everything came crashing down?

This wasn’t just "messy" anymore.

It was doomed.

I loved her.

But I didn’t know if love was enough to survive the wreckage I was creating.

12:28 AM — A Final Thought

Before I finally drifted off, I remembered something she said weeks ago:

"Secrets are like mold — they grow in silence."

And ours?

It was starting to rot.

📘 End of Chapter 20

💬 YOUR TURN!

Who do you think heard them?

Was it Milo? Or was it someone more dangerous — like Dad?

👇 Drop your theories — and your bets — in the comments!

❤️ Tap that heart if your anxiety is climbing right along with Aaron’s.

🔔 Follow now — Chapter 21 brings a confrontation and a mistake that can’t be undone.