Chapter 65: Her Softest Victory Yet
The last person I ever expected to see at my door was Avery Brooke Prescott.
And yet—here she was.
I gripped the doorframe tighter than I meant to. My first thought wasn’t why she was here. It was how.
"How the hell did you even find this place?" I asked before I could stop myself.
She tilted her head, smiling like I’d just asked a silly question. "I asked around. You’re not that hard to track down, Kai. People talk."
I swallowed, my jaw stiff. Great. Just great.
Before I could shut the door, she leaned in a little, her voice softer. "Can I come in? Just for a bit? I’ve been walking around all morning trying to get here... it’d be cruel to send me back now, don’t you think?"
I froze. She said it so simply, like she wasn’t asking for much at all. And maybe she was right—it would feel cruel to tell her no when she’d made it all the way here. But every nerve in me screamed that letting her in was the worst possible idea.
Still... I stepped aside. Just barely.
Avery smiled, small and polite, and walked past me like she’d been invited. The click of her heels against my floor felt way too loud in the quiet morning. She set her bag on the armrest of my couch and sat down, her posture perfect as always, hands folded neatly in her lap.
Meanwhile, I stayed standing.
Because if I sat, it would feel too normal. Too casual. And nothing about this was normal.
I kept glancing back toward the hallway. My bedroom door was still closed. Celestia was still asleep. Thank God.
Don’t wake up. Please, don’t wake up.
My palms were sweating. My throat felt tight. I had just—just—made up with Celestia after the whole "I gave Avery my number" mess. And now? Now Avery was in my living room. On my couch. Breathing my air.
If Celestia opened that door right now, it’d be game over.
"So..." Avery crossed one leg over the other, her eyes flicking up at me. Calm. Perfectly calm. "This is where you live."
"Yeah." My voice cracked, and I cleared my throat. "That’s—uh. That’s right."
She smiled. "It’s... different from what I imagined."
I frowned. "Different how?"
"More... cozy." Her gaze flicked toward the kitchen counter, then back to me. "Not what I pictured for you."
I shoved my hands in my pockets so she wouldn’t see them shake. "Well, you pictured wrong."
The words came out sharper than I meant, and her brows lifted. Not offended—just curious.
"You seem tense," she said quietly.
"I wonder why," I muttered.
She ignored that, her smile staying put. "I didn’t mean to drop by unannounced. I just..." She paused, folding her hands tighter. "I wanted to talk. Is that so bad?"
Yes. Yes, it was bad. Very bad.
But I couldn’t say that.
Instead, I stood there like an idiot, every second feeling heavier than the last.
Her eyes softened. "You’re not even going to sit?"
I shook my head. "I don’t plan on keeping you long."
Her lips curved, like she found that amusing. "I see. Then I’ll talk fast."
My stomach sank. Because whatever she had come here to say, I already knew it wasn’t going to be fast.
And in the next room... Celestia slept.
---
I didn’t sit.
I couldn’t.
Avery Brooke Prescott sat on my couch like she’d been born there. Perfect posture, ankles crossed, hands folded over one knee. Not a hair out of place.
Meanwhile, I stood three feet away, stiff as hell, like she was a stranger who’d broken in.
Because that’s what it felt like—an invasion.
"So," she said, her voice light, like we were catching up after class. "How are you?"
I stared. "How am I?"
"Yes." She tilted her head, smiling. "Isn’t that a normal thing to ask?"
I rubbed the back of my neck. "Normal depends on who’s asking."
Her smile flickered, just a little, then settled back into place. "I suppose that’s true. Still... I wanted to know. You’ve seemed... different, lately."
I didn’t answer. Couldn’t. My eyes kept darting to the hallway, to the door that separated us from a sleeping Celestia.
Avery noticed. Of course she did. Her gaze followed mine before sliding back. "Expecting someone?"
"No." My voice was too quick, too defensive. "No one."
She hummed, like she didn’t believe me, but let it go. "Anyway, I just thought it would be nice... to talk. To sit down with someone who doesn’t look at me like I’m the villain in their story."
My stomach dropped. I didn’t need her to name names. I knew exactly who she meant.
I crossed my arms. "You picked the wrong place for that."
"Why?" Her brows knit, her expression softening just enough to look genuine. "Because she hates me? Kai, you know that isn’t fair. We’ve never even tried to understand each other."
I clenched my jaw. "Maybe some people don’t need to try."
Her lips parted at that, like she was hurt, but the look in her eyes told me it was an act. A well-practiced one. "You really think I’m that bad?"
I didn’t answer.
She leaned forward, resting her elbows lightly on her knees. "I know what you’re thinking. You think I’m only here to cause trouble. To stir things up. But that’s not true. I just..." She hesitated, choosing her words carefully. "I feel like I can actually breathe when I’m around you. I don’t have to perform. I don’t have to fight for space like I do with everyone else. It’s... safe."
Safe. The word grated against my nerves.
"Funny," I muttered, "because this feels like the opposite of safe."
Her smile curved again, softer this time. "Maybe for you. Not for me."
My chest tightened. I wanted her to leave. I wanted to push her out the door, lock it, and never see her again. But she sat there, calm, composed, looking for all the world like a girl who just wanted a friend.
And I hated how convincing she could be.
"Look," I said finally, forcing the words out, "this—whatever this is—it’s not a good idea. You shouldn’t be here."
"Why not?" she asked simply.
"Because—" My throat closed. Because Celestia is asleep in the next room. Because she’s the only person I want in my life. Because if she sees you here, it’ll ruin everything.
I shook my head instead. "Just... because."
Her brows lifted. "That’s not an answer."
"It’s the only one you’re getting."
She leaned back slowly, her posture still perfect, but her eyes sharper now. "So you don’t even want to try? To be friends?"
Friends. The word sounded wrong in her mouth.
"You don’t want to talk? Laugh? Maybe... even enjoy each other’s company?"
My skin prickled. "No."
"No?" She repeated it like she couldn’t believe it. "Just like that? You shut the door without even giving me a chance?"
"Yes." My hands were fists in my pockets now.
Her lips parted, but before she could say more, she softened her expression again, almost pleading. "I’m not asking for much, Kai. Out of everyone in that entire school, you’re the only one I feel like I can actually trust. Isn’t that worth something?"
Trust? From her? That wasn’t really the issue. The issue was my girlfriend waking up and finding her here.
So instead of speaking, I bit my tongue and stayed quiet.
The silence stretched. Too long. Too heavy.
Avery shifted slightly, the hem of her skirt brushing against her knees as she crossed her legs the other way. Still graceful. Still poised. "You’re making me feel unwelcome."
"Good," I muttered.
Her eyes widened, like she hadn’t expected me to say it out loud.
And that was when—
The door behind me clicked.
Every nerve in me froze at once.
I turned.
Celestia stood there, leaning against the frame, her hair messy, my shirt hanging off her shoulder. Sleep still clung to her eyes, but her mouth pulled down into the slowest, sharpest frown.
"Wow," she said softly.
---
I’d braced for war. Screaming, claws out, Celestia ready to tear Avery apart the second she saw her sitting here.
But instead, she leaned on the doorframe like she’d been watching a bad movie, arms crossed, one brow arched.
"Wow," she said. Just that. No yelling. No scene.
It threw me off. It definitely threw Avery off—her shoulders tensed before she smoothed it over with that same polite smile she always wore.
"Celestia," she greeted.
"Avery," Celestia returned, calm, flat. Like she was naming a type of detergent she didn’t buy.
The silence stretched until Avery tilted her head, pretending curiosity. "I’m wondering... what are you doing here? On a Sunday?"
My throat went dry. I wanted to explain, to step in before this got worse. But before I could, Celestia moved.
She didn’t march or stomp—she just pushed off the frame and crossed the room at her own pace, the picture of control. Then she stopped beside me, shoulder brushing mine like she was reminding me whose side I was on without saying a word.
Her voice was calm, almost too calm, when she spoke again. "Don’t you get what no, I don’t want to be friends means? Or are you intentionally just being daft?"
The jab was low, subtle, but it landed. I saw Avery’s smile twitch, just for a second, before she covered it.
Celestia didn’t press. She didn’t need to. Her silence did the work. And for once, Avery was the one who broke. She stood, smoothing her skirt. "Right. Well. I’ll be going then."
She left, the click of the door behind her sounding more like defeat than goodbye.
I was still frozen, trying to process what I’d just seen. The girl I expected to blow up the second Avery breathed near me had... won by staying calm. Completely in control.
Then Celestia turned to me, eyes soft, lips tilting into the sweetest pout. She tugged lightly at my arm.
"Husband," she whined, almost sing-song, "I’m hungry. Let’s go eat before the rice gets soggy."
The whiplash nearly gave me vertigo.
And that’s when it hit me—she was already changing. Not because I asked her to, not because she wanted to. But because after that fight, after almost losing me, she thought she had to.
Even though I’d told her not to.
---
To be continued...