Chapter 17
1323 Words
The night air was thick with smoke, sweat, and silence.
Inside one of the back rooms of the Verona compound, DJ stood near the window, the orange glow of his cigarette dimming against the skyline. His jaw was tight, eyes locked on the city beyond—as if staring long enough might fix it all.
Behind him, Aron leaned against the desk, arms crossed, watching his friend with the kind of quiet patience that came from years of loyalty.
“You got it bad, man,” Aron finally muttered.
DJ didn’t turn. Just let the smoke trail from his lips.
“She’s different.”
Aron exhaled through his nose. “Yeah. I figured that out back when you used to talk about her like she was the fuckin’ moon.”
DJ turned his head slightly, finally meeting Aron’s eyes.
“She is the moon,” he said lowly. “Only light I ever knew.”
Aron pushed off the desk. “That light’s gonna get her killed.”
DJ stiffened.
“I dug deeper into Wyatt,” Aron continued. “You were right to be cautious. But you don’t know how deep this s**t runs.”
DJ flicked his cigarette out the window. “Then tell me.”
Aron grabbed a manila folder from the desk and opened it.
“Three years ago. Socialite from Detroit. Blonde. Pretty. Classy. Wyatt dated her for six months. She tried to break it off after catching him beating one of his men half to death in her living room.”
DJ didn’t move.
“She ‘slipped’ off her balcony two weeks later. Broken neck. Ruled an accident.”
DJ’s jaw clenched.
“Two years ago. Another one. Schoolteacher. Young. Came from money. Blonde. Blue eyes. Tried to leave after he hit her during an argument.”
Aron flipped to the next photo.
“She ended up in the hospital. Cracked ribs. Detached retina. Missing teeth.”
DJ closed his eyes.
“There's countless others. This ain’t just obsession, DJ. This is a fuckin’ pattern.”
Silence stretched between them.
Aron stepped closer, voice lower. Firmer.
“You know what he sees when he looks at Aurelia. She’s the mold. His type. Perfectly tied-up, blonde-haired fantasy. Only difference? This one’s interested in you.”
DJ didn’t say anything.
“So ask yourself—what do you think Wyatt’s gonna do to her if this keeps going?”
The words sank like lead.
DJ turned fully now, eyes shadowed in the dim light.
“I promised her I’d never leave her again.”
“And if you don’t? She ends up in the hospital, or worse.”
The room went still.
DJ’s fists were clenched at his sides, the veins in his forearms thick with tension. The war inside him showed in the tightness of his shoulders, the conflict twisting behind his dark eyes.
He had already failed her once.
Walked away.
Broken a promise.
And yet… keeping it now might destroy her.
“I’m not tellin’ you to stop lovin’ her,” Aron said softer now. “I’m tellin’ you to stop showin’ it. Until this city’s ours again. Until that psychopath is outta the picture.”
DJ ran a hand down his face and exhaled.
It felt like tearing a piece of himself away.
But Aron was right.
He’d rather have Aurelia alive and distant… than close and dead.
Finally, he gave a single tight nod.
“Alright.”
Aron clasped him on the shoulder.
“We’ll fix this. Then you go get your moon.”
The sun hung low over the city skyline, casting a golden haze over the quiet garden behind Aurelia's house. DJ stood beneath the old oak tree, the breeze shifting his coat as if whispering things he didn’t want to hear.
Aurelia sat on the stone bench, her pale hands wringing in her lap. She looked at him, her eyes searching, pleading—but DJ wouldn’t meet her gaze.
He was silent, the air thick between them.
Finally, she asked softly, “What’s going on, DJ?”
His jaw ticked, fists buried in the pockets of his long coat.
“We can’t keep doin’ this,” he said, voice low.
Aurelia’s chest rose sharply. “What are you talking about?”
DJ turned his head away. “Us. This… whatever it is. It’s too dangerous.”
Aurelia stood. “I’m not afraid.”
DJ looked at her then, his eyes hard, unreadable. “You should be.”
She stepped closer. “I don’t care. I just want to be with you.”
Her voice cracked, full of emotion. “DJ, I waited for you. All these years, I never stopped hoping you’d come back. I don’t care about Wyatt. I don’t care what people say. I just want you.”
He shook his head, taking a step back. “It’s not about what you want. It’s about what’s safe.”
Her brows furrowed. “Safe? I know you’ll keep me safe.”
A pause.
“Then let’s run away,” she whispered, taking his hand. “Let’s just go. Leave this whole mess behind.”
DJ stared down at her hand, warm and delicate in his. God, how he wanted that. But he couldn’t.
His fingers slipped from hers.
“We run… he’ll find us,” DJ said tightly. “He’ll come after you. He’s not just some spoiled punk. He’s sick. Obsessive. He kills what he can’t have.”
She looked up at him, pain flooding her face. “Then we fight.”
He let out a cold, bitter laugh and turned from her. “Then what? Live in hiding? On the run for the rest of our lives?”
DJ turned back to her, eyes dark, voice colder than she’d ever heard.
“No matter where we go, no one’s gonna accept us. Not you and me. You’re white. I’m Black. People don’t exactly celebrate that in the real world. It’d never work.”
Aurelia reeled as if he’d slapped her. “Is… is that what you really think?”
He didn’t answer. Couldn’t. If he did, the truth would shatter everything.
Tears swelled in her eyes, spilling freely now. She stepped closer, hand on his chest.
“I don’t care what anyone else thinks. I care about us. I’ve waited for you… not just emotionally but…”
She hesitated, then whispered, “Physically too.”
DJ froze.
Her meaning hit him like a punch to the gut.
His chest rose sharply, composure faltering as he looked into her tear-filled eyes.
She continued, voice trembling, “I wanted it to be you. I wanted you to be my first.”
DJ had to turn away, hide the pain in his expression.
“I’m sorry, Lia,” he said coldly. “You live in a fantasy world. This… thing we want—it’s not real. Not for people like us. Our worlds… they’re opposites.”
“But they don’t have to be,” she cried. “We could make our own.”
DJ hardened his jaw, forced steel into his spine, crushed the urge to pull her into his arms and never let go.
“I won’t let you get hurt because of me,” he said flatly. “If it means you hate me, so be it. At least you’ll be safe.”
Aurelia stood frozen, stunned.
Then, her voice cut through the stillness, soft but sharp.
“You may have everyone else fooled, thinking you're this big bad gangster. But I know the real you. You’re still just a little boy scared of thunderstorms.”
DJ’s breath caught.
Before he could speak, she turned and walked away, the click of her heels echoing like a slow heartbeat against the stone path.
DJ stood motionless beneath the oak tree, shadows dancing over his face as the storm rolled in.
And this time, she wasn’t there to hold him.
- Writer
