Bound to the Alpha

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Jhune's POV

I couldn't help but feel a shiver run down my spine at the hollowness in his tone.

I pressed my lips together, preparing to explain. "Uh, I just came from work," I said, scratching the back of my neck.

"You have a job?" he asked, and I nodded, noticing the lack of emotion on his face as he stared at me. "And you didn’t even tell me?"

I wasn’t sure if it was just my imagination, but I thought I detected a hint of disappointment in his voice.

"Do I have to?" I averted my gaze. "It's not like I need to tell you everything I do." I couldn’t shake the feeling that he was somehow angry with me.

For what? Did I do something wrong?

"Yeah, right," he laughed bitterly. "Who am I kidding?" He ran a hand through his hair.
"Why do I even bother asking?"

I turned back to him, my lips parting to speak. "What's wrong? Are you mad at me?"

"No."

"Then why are you reacting like this?" I demanded, searching for an answer.

I couldn't understand him because he wasn't making things clear to me.

A strange emotion flickering in his eyes as they locked onto mine. "Why are you acting like that?"

I was utterly confused by what he was trying to say. "Acting like what?"

He pressed his lips together, his eyes growing even more distant. "Acting as if I don't matter to you."

What is he talking about?

I was left speechless by his words.

"Tell me," he said, his gaze empty and searching. "Who am I to you?"

I didn’t know how to answer, nor did I know how to react to this sudden shift in his behavior.

"Why are you asking me that?" I said. "Are you upset because I didn’t tell you I had a job?"

"That’s not the issue." he replied firmly. "Your job has nothing to do with this."

"Then what is it?!" I raised my voice slightly. "Why are you acting like I’ve done something terrible, just because I found a job for myself?" Those words weren’t what I intended, my emotions took over in the heat of the moment.

"Fine. I decided to find a job because I just don't want to keep relying on you," I said, trying to hide how much I was hurt.

He didn’t say anything. We were swallowed by an uneasy silence before I finally broke it.

"Maybe we’re both just tired," I sighed. "It’s better not to talk when we can’t understand each other." I bit my lip in frustration.

"Let’s talk tomorrow," I said, making my way  toward the stairs. As I walked past him, I was halted by his sudden words.

"I hate this feeling that keeps pounding in my chest whenever you’re around," he said in a soft voice.

"Every time I try to reach you, I can’t seem to hold onto you," he continued, I felt his heavy footsteps drawing closer.

I couldn’t turn around. My heart was pounding so hard that I couldn’t bring myself to look at him.

My body tensed as I felt his arms wrap around my waist, and then his face buried into my neck.

"It’s me." he said, his voice trembling slightly. "I’m the problem."

"No matter what I do, I can’t shake this strange feeling in my chest," he whispered.

"Perhaps I’ve been fooling myself, thinking I’ve been waiting for you all along," he said  those last words before he released me from his embrace.

With that, he walked past me. My body remained frozen, unable to move or react. I didn’t know what to say or do.

I was overwhelmed by his sudden confession. I’m not so naive that I couldn’t understand what he was trying to say.

I instinctively clutched my chest, feeling as if my heart might burst from the intensity of the moment.

His words replayed in my mind, and in frustration, I grabbed my hair. It felt as if I was on the verge of losing my sanity.

I placed a hand on my churning stomach. I hadn’t eaten and hadn’t felt hungry earlier, so food had completely slipped my mind.

I guess I’ll just have to sleep off this hunger.

I closed my eyes to rest, but despite several attempts, I couldn’t fall asleep.

Frustrated, I got up and decided to head downstairs for something to eat. As I opened the door, my gaze was automatically drawn to Zack’s door.

I wondered if he had already eaten.

I tried to push the thought out of my mind and headed downstairs. I waited for the water to boil in the pot so I could cook some ramen when my phone suddenly vibrated.

I was puzzled to see that the message came from an unregistered number.

[Unregistered number: I won't be able to make it today. Please take care of Ezekiel.]

My eyebrows furrowed as I read the message. I was still wondering who it was from when another message suddenly popped up.

[Unregistered Number: By the way, it’s me, Russel.]

Where the hell did he get my number?

Frowning, I put my phone back in my pocket and continued with what I was doing. After finishing cooking, I had a quick meal in the kitchen.

Afterward, I marched upstairs. I was halfway to my room when Zack’s door opened.

We both froze as our eyes met. It was awkward. Because of what happened earlier, I wasn’t sure how to approach him.

From what he was wearing, it was clear he was about to go out, but where to? It was already late at night. Was he still going to work?

I cleared my throat and spoke loudly to break the silence between us. "A-are you leaving?"

He pressed his lips together, looked away, and placed both hands in his pockets. "Yeah." he replied briefly.

There was no hint of hesitation on his face,he remained calm, as if nothing had happened earlier, unlike me, who still couldn’t process it.

I scratched the back of my neck. "I see."

I thought speaking would ease the awkwardness between us, but it seemed to make it worse.

I couldn’t say anything more, I couldn’t keep embarrassing myself in front of him, especially when he clearly didn’t want to talk, he's even avoiding eye contact.

"I'm just going out for a bit," he said with an emotionless tone as he walked past me. "Don’t wait for me," he added before heading out, leaving me standing there.

I clutched my chest tightly. As usual, I felt the familiar heaviness in my chest, but unlike before, it was worse. It felt as though something was crushing my heart.

I was hurting, even though I knew there was no concrete reason for it.