Try Me (18+)

Thirty Five

Confessions #2

Ezra was sat in Yong's unnecessarily big dining room, a  lamp casting a warm, glow over the scattered notes and books on the large oak table. She didn't want to study in what was essentially her room, it wasn't hers and she didn't want to get used to it. She was trying to focus on her revision, but her thoughts were a jumbled mess.Studying still felt odd but it gave her hope. Yong's insistence that she keep up with her studies, so much so that he had arranged for her to take her midterm exam online under proctored supervision, gave her a glimmer of hope that, someday, he might let her go. However long that may be. 

Across the table, Noah sat with his legs crossed and arms folded, his head hung backwards as he kept his eyes closed. Not asleep, just closed.  His presence was calming, a stark contrast to the tension that seemed to cling to Yong like a second skin and the suffocating feeling of shame and guilt she had with Jude. Noah was patient, he was considerate and kind, vying for her freedom more than she did herself sometimes. He made her wonder why these men had chosen to live this life. She could tell that Noah didn't really want to be doing the things he did but why he still did it? Could it be his weird obedience towards Yong, his loyalty to his friends, a debt that he had to repay, or fear of Julian? Ezra might never know but she would be lying if she wasn't curious. In fact, the longer she was here, the more she wanted to know about the ins and outs of this business, the other men and their roles and, about Yong. She shook her head with a sigh, before going back to her notes. 

"Okay," Noah said, opening his eyes again. "Tell me about the question agian?"

Ezra sighed, tapping her pen against her temple. "Because... the hypothesis needed to account for the variables in the second dataset, and B doesn't—oh, wait, I get it now. C is the only one that does." She looked up, her face lighting up with realization.

"There it is," Noah said, smiling. "Told you you'd get it."

"Why are you good at statistics?" She couldn't help but smile back, grateful for his patience. "Thanks for helping me. It's been a while since anyone walked me through stuff like this." Her smile slightly fell, the last person who studied with her like this was Nathan. 

"I loved statistics for the one year I was in university," Noah replied, shrugging modestly. "And I like teaching. Keeps me sharp now that I never stimulate my brain."

Ezra tilted her head, observing him. There was something disarming about Noah. He was warm, approachable, liked to study and it seems like it was something he'd rather be doing instead of risking his life everyday.  His presence was soothing, nothing like  the cold, enigmatic men she found herself surrounded by lately. She almost wished that he was the one taken by her and she by him, things would be so much easier if she had just slept with him instead of Jude. She glanced at him; she still could. It was a joke, she laughed to herself softly. She could never. She had too much respect for Noah and though she still had an issue with his inability to stand up to Yong and help her get out, she could understand that there was a bigger picture at hand. As she studied his face, something nagged at her, a strange sense of familiarity she couldn't place. It was the same feeling when she saw him for the first time. 

The sun set over the water, a warm summer breeze giving her relief of  the warm June heat. She remembered the laughter, the way the air carried the scent of summer blossoms, and the way he had smiled at her; mischievous, warm, full of love and adoration, and entirely too charming for his own good.

"Ezra, come on," Nathan had said, pulling her to her feet. "Life's too short to spend all day in a library."

"You're just saying that because you're jealous I'm smarter than you," she'd teased, punching his arm lightly. "Besides you're a med student too. I'm going to need you to be more stressed."