Listen, Obey

27. Twenty-Seventh Lesson

I awoke as Matthews drove us along the gravel road leading up to his house. Small stones crunched against each other beneath the tires, welcoming us in their own way, and the endless darkness gave way to lit up branches and windows. It was difficult not to like the place—so different from the cold apartment that we left.

Matthews parked the car and got out. I tracked his movement around the car until I realized what he was doing. Shaking my head at his useless gesture, I pulled the handle to get out on my own. Matthew's elegant fingers clasped the top of the door.

"Didn't know you were awake," he said.

"I am."

I undid my belt and stepped outside, taking a deep breath to let the cold air fill my lungs until they ached. The stars shone brighter in the sky out here, not hampered by the dome of scattered light above the city. Small dots of hope looking down on us.

"Let's go inside. You need something to eat before you pass out again."

"I'm not hungry," I replied, still staring at the sky.

"Stop lying."

I didn't have an answer to that, especially since I had used the excuse of being hungry to avoid listening to whatever explanation he had for whatever it was that had happened. Forcing away every confused emotion I felt, I followed him up the short stairs and inside his house.

Warmth greeted me, hugging me from all sides at once while Matthews closed the door behind me. I tugged at the coat but stopped as I remembered that I was next to naked underneath.

Matthews must have seen my confusion because he pulled down a wool sweater from one of the racks and handed it to me. "Here you go."

As soon as my hands gripped the sweater, he turned around and left for the kitchen. The simple gesture of leaving me alone to change was nice, but it also left me feeling awkward and alone in his hallway. Not my home. His. I decided to let go of that thought and shrugged out of the coat. I didn't have the energy to ponder over every little thing going on between us. The only thing I understood was that I had no clue what was happening and that I wasn't sure I wanted to understand.

The wool was soft against my skin, and even if the sweater was several sizes too large, I decided that I would hog this one for as long as I could. I caught myself in the mirror and stared at the sight, finding it weird that it hadn't taken more than a few days for my cheeks to hollow. I looked like a wreck.

I tip-toed over to the kitchen, afraid that sounds would cause Tilia to wake up. Pausing in the doorway, I waited for Matthews to acknowledge me. The proper way would have been to help him out, or at least ask him if I could, but for some reason I was afraid to approach him. I wanted to stay silent and out of his hair. This was his home, after all, and I was invading it.

"Ethan, what do you want to eat?"

My shoulders rose and fell on their own.

"Sometimes I wonder if you want me to take every little decision away from you, which certainly would suffocate both you and me," he said.

"What?" What the hell was he talking about? I was too tired for this shit.

"Nothing."

I could tell he was annoyed, but then again, perhaps I wasn't the only one who was tired. It was 4 AM, definitely too late to be awake.

He placed a plate on the counter before him and waved for me. "Some leftovers we had, just eat what you want and throw the rest. I'll go prepare a bed for you."

He was still acting weird, but no matter how hard I thought about it, I couldn't come up with a reasonable explanation. Definitely too tired.

The food tasted delicious, a tell-tale sign that I was starved, or maybe he was an excellent cook. It didn't matter if it was one reason or the other, I still gobbled up the food until my stomach protested. After placing the dishes in the washer, I made my way out of the kitchen, afraid that I would fall asleep where I stood if I didn't move.

The house was silent, the kind of silent that one never experienced in the city. I couldn't remember if I noticed the lack of sound the last time I spent the night.

A floorboard creaked, and I followed the sound to the room where I had slept before. Matthews sat on the bed, his back hunched. Something was definitely wrong.

"Are you okay?"

He looked up, seemingly shocked to see me there as if his thoughts had wandered far away.

"I'm fine."

"No lying," I replied.

A faint smile graced his lips. "I don't know how to fix this, Ethan."

The ever confident Marc Matthews sat on a bed, defeated, telling me that he was just as clueless as I was. It worried me, but it also sparked something within me—something I hadn't felt in a long time. I wanted to comfort him.

I sat down beside him, taking one of his hands in mine. "I bet we're going to be a lot smarter about this in the morning."

His fingers tangled with mine. "You're right. Just tell me you'll give me a chance to explain."

"I will." As I answered, I realized that I wanted to give him a chance. There was truth in those simple words.

A few minutes passed, a few minutes of comfortable, gentle intimacy. It wasn't much, only light touches of his fingers against mine, and my shoulder brushing his. They were touches filled with promise, but a promise so afraid of being rejected that it barely held on. It was terrified, just like I was.

"I should go. I'm keeping you awake," Matthews said, his voice as careful as his touch.

"Stay."

I could feel how he tensed beside me. "Are you sure?" His steel blue eyes questioned mine, seeking confirmation on their own. He must have seen something because without another word, he got up and pulled me with him. "We'll sleep in my bed."

It was another simple sentence, but it caught my heart and wrapped it in something warm. His bed.

I fell into his embrace. "I'd like that."

A/N I kinda love this chapter tbh. Finally, we're getting somewhere :D