The Boy In Room 307

Midnight feuds

Jayden's hand was still gripping the front of Mia's jacket when she finally found the courage to look him in the eyes.

"Why do you let people push you around?" he demanded. "And what the hell was that with Ethan?"

Mia swallowed, trying not to focus on how close they were standing. Jayden's face was only inches from hers, and his expression was so cold that it felt as though he had dragged her into the room just to freeze her to death.

"What are you talking about?" she asked, forcing her voice to remain steady.

"Don't play dumb with me." His grip tightened slightly. "That guy had his hands all over you, and you just stood there grinning like an idiot."

Mia stared at him in disbelief. Of all the things she had expected Jayden to complain about after dragging her out of a party, his problem with Ethan hadn't even crossed her mind.

"First of all, he wasn't doing anything wrong," she replied, pushing against Jayden's chest until he finally released her jacket. "Second, why do you care?"

Jayden's expression hardened.

"Why do I care?" he repeated slowly.

"Yes. Why do you care who talks to me or who puts an arm around my shoulder? You're not my father, my coach, or my babysitter."

For a moment, Jayden said nothing. He looked down at her with a mixture of disbelief and irritation, as though the little roommate he had been insulting since their first meeting had suddenly developed the courage to challenge him.

"You're right," he said at last, taking a step back. "You're none of my business."

"Good. Then stop acting like you own me."

Mia regretted the words almost immediately, but she refused to take them back. She had spent the entire evening pretending to be someone else, enduring the jokes and insults of people who thought she was too small to defend herself. The last thing she needed was Jayden treating her like another problem he had been forced to tolerate.

Jayden let out a short, humorless laugh.

"Own you? Trust me, Max, if anyone offered me the chance to get rid of you, I'd take it without thinking twice."

"Then perhaps you should have requested a different roommate."

"Perhaps you should have applied for a room somewhere else."

"Perhaps you should learn how to speak to people without making them feel worthless!"

The words escaped Mia before she could stop them. Silence fell between them, and for the first time that night, Jayden seemed genuinely taken aback. His jaw tightened, and something unreadable flickered across his face before his familiar expression of indifference returned.

"Finished?" he asked.

Mia folded her arms across her chest.

"Not even close."

"Then save the rest for someone who gives a damn."

Jayden turned away from her and limped toward his bed, refusing to acknowledge the way she watched him favor his injured leg. Even after the near-fight at the lounge, he moved as though every step reminded him of something he desperately wanted to forget.

Mia's anger softened for a brief moment, but she quickly pushed the feeling aside. She had come to Crownridge to help him, not to become another person he could insult whenever he was in a bad mood.

"At least Ethan treats me like a human being," she said, her voice quieter but no less firm. "He doesn't look at me like I'm some disgusting pest that crawled into his room."

Jayden stopped beside his bed.

Slowly, he turned his head toward her.

"Then go live with Ethan."

Mia blinked.

"What?"

"You heard me. Since he's such a wonderful person, perhaps you should ask him to take you in. I'm sure he'd be delighted to have you following him around like a lost puppy."

"You're unbelievable."

"And you're annoying."

"At least I'm not miserable enough to make everyone around me miserable, too."

The moment the words left her mouth, Mia knew she had crossed a line. Jayden's face changed, and the brief irritation in his eyes gave way to something much colder. He stared at her for several seconds without saying anything, making the silence feel heavier than any insult he could have thrown back at her.

"You're right," he finally said. "You don't know anything about me."

His voice was so flat that Mia wished he would shout instead.

"You don't know what happened to me, what I've lost, or what it feels like to watch everything you worked for disappear in a single moment." He pulled the blanket away from his bed and sat down carefully, keeping his injured knee extended. "So do yourself a favor, Max. Stop pretending you understand people just because they smile at you."

Mia's throat tightened.

"Jayden, that isn't what—"

"Good night."

He turned his back on her before she could finish.

Mia stood near the door, staring at his broad shoulders. She wanted to explain that she had not meant to make light of his injury, but the words felt useless now. Every attempt to get close to him seemed to end with another wall being built between them.

After a moment, she bent down to pick up the jacket that had slipped from her shoulders during their argument.

"Fine," she muttered. "Enjoy your miserable night."

Jayden didn't answer.

Mia crossed to her side of the room and closed the small space around her belongings, making sure none of them crossed the white tape line Jayden had drawn across the floor. She changed into loose sleeping clothes behind the half-open wardrobe door, careful to keep her chest binding in place, then climbed onto her narrow bed.

The room gradually fell quiet.

Outside, voices drifted through the hallway as the other athletes returned from the party. Someone laughed loudly on the floor below, followed by the distant slam of a door. Mia pulled her blanket over her shoulders and stared at the ceiling, replaying the confrontation until every word began to irritate her all over again.

She could still hear Jayden telling her to go live with Ethan.

The thought made her frown.

Why had he reacted so strongly to Ethan's behavior? Jayden had made it clear from the beginning that he wanted nothing to do with her. He barely tolerated her presence, complained about everything she did, and had even drawn a line across their shared room as though they were enemies living under a temporary peace agreement.

Yet he had watched Ethan put an arm around her shoulders, and something in his expression had changed.

Mia rolled onto her side.

Perhaps Jayden simply hated everyone who seemed happy.

That explanation made more sense than imagining he cared about what happened to her. Whatever had happened to his knee, it had clearly changed the way he saw the world, and she needed to remember that before trying to force her way into his life again.

She had to be patient.

Tomorrow, she would find a way to learn more about his injury. Perhaps there were old medical reports, rehabilitation records, or someone on the basketball team who knew what had really happened. If she could understand the problem, she might finally discover how to help him.

But for tonight, she would leave him alone.

Mia closed her eyes and tried to sleep.

It was nearly midnight when a strange sound pulled her out of the darkness.

At first, she thought someone was talking in the hallway. She remained still, listening to the muffled noise outside their room, until another sound came from the opposite side of the room.

A low groan.

Mia opened her eyes.

The room was almost completely dark, illuminated only by the faint light filtering through the curtains. She lifted her head and looked toward Jayden's bed, but his body was hidden beneath the blanket.

Another groan escaped him.

This time, it was followed by a sharp, uneven breath.

"Jayden?" Mia whispered.

There was no response.

She pushed herself up on her elbows, listening carefully. A few seconds passed before she heard the rustle of bedsheets and another strained sound, as though Jayden were trying to hold back a cry of pain.

Mia's stomach tightened.

"Jayden, are you okay?"

"Go back to sleep," he muttered.

His voice was rough and strained, nothing like the sharp tone he had used during their argument.

Mia sat up completely.

"You're making strange noises over there. How am I supposed to sleep?"

"Then put a pillow over your head."

Even now, he had enough energy to be rude.

Mia almost lay back down out of spite, but another groan stopped her. It was louder this time, and she heard the bed creak as Jayden shifted his position.

She swung her legs over the edge of her mattress.

"Is it your knee?"

"Go. To. Sleep."

"That isn't an answer."

"It's the only one you're getting."

Mia stared into the darkness, debating whether to listen to him. She knew Jayden hated anyone interfering in his business, especially when it involved his injury. Still, the sounds coming from his bed were becoming harder to ignore.

She remembered the way he had walked back from the party, dragging his injured leg behind him. He had spent the entire evening on his feet, and the struggle to stop the athlete from pushing her into the pool had probably forced him to put more weight on his damaged knee than he should have.

Perhaps he had aggravated the injury.

"Did you take anything for the pain?" she asked.

"Max."

"What?"

"Stop talking."

Mia pressed her lips together.

Fine. If he wanted to be stubborn, he could be stubborn. She had no intention of begging a grown man to accept basic concern, especially when he had spent the evening making it clear that he wanted her nowhere near him.

She lay back down and pulled the blanket over herself.

For several minutes, the room remained silent.

Then Jayden made a strangled sound that sent Mia upright again.

She looked toward his bed and saw him gripping the edge of his mattress. Even in the dim light, she could make out the tension in his shoulders and the way his body had curled forward. His injured leg was stretched out stiffly, and he seemed unable to find a position that eased the pain.

"Jayden?"

"Don't."

The single word came out through clenched teeth.

Mia ignored him and reached for the small lamp beside her bed. When she switched it on, the room filled with a soft yellow glow, revealing Jayden's face twisted in pain.

Sweat covered his forehead, and his fingers dug into the sheets. The knee beneath his loose sleeping shorts looked swollen around the old scar, the skin stretched tight over the injured joint.

Mia's breath caught.

"Your knee is swollen."

"No kidding."

"Why didn't you say something?"

Jayden let out a bitter laugh that turned into a sharp gasp when his leg twitched.

"Because I don't need an audience."

"Nobody is watching you for entertainment!"

"Then turn off the damn light."

Mia hesitated, staring at the way he fought to keep his face expressionless even as another spasm shook his injured leg. She had seen enough injuries during her recovery to recognize when someone was struggling through serious pain, and she knew that pretending everything was fine would not make the problem disappear.

"Have you been having these spasms for a long time?" she asked.

Jayden's eyes snapped toward her.

"Why do you want to know?"

"Because you're clearly in pain."

"And?"

Mia stared at him.

"And perhaps you should stop acting like suffering is some kind of competition you have to win."

His expression darkened, but he was too busy controlling his breathing to answer immediately. He pressed his head against the pillow and squeezed his eyes shut, his jaw working as another wave of pain passed through him.

Mia climbed out of bed.

She crossed to the small bathroom and turned on the tap, letting warm water run over a clean towel. After wringing it out, she held the folded cloth between her hands, testing the temperature before returning to the room.

Jayden had managed to straighten his back, but his injured leg remained rigid. His breathing was still uneven, and he kept one hand pressed against the mattress as though the smallest movement might make the pain worse.

"What are you doing?" he demanded when he noticed the towel.

"Helping."

"I didn't ask you to."

"Well, you aren't exactly in a position to give a speech about your independence right now."

"Mia—"

The name almost stopped her.

For one terrifying second, Mia wondered whether she had somehow revealed herself. Then she realized Jayden had merely started to say something else, and she had mistaken the sound in her nervousness.

He looked at her suspiciously.

"Stay on your side of the room."

Mia glanced down at the white tape line dividing the floor. It had seemed ridiculous when Jayden first drew it, but now it looked like a barrier he had built to keep the entire world away from him.

She could obey him.

She could return to her bed, switch off the light, and pretend she had heard nothing. By morning, Jayden would probably have recovered enough to insult her again, and neither of them would need to acknowledge what had happened.

But she couldn't forget the look on his face.

Three years earlier, a stranger had paid one hundred and fifty thousand dollars to save her life when her own family could not afford the operation. She had spent years searching for that stranger, following the only clue she had been given until it led her to Jayden Cole.

She still didn't know why he had helped her, and she had no idea how to repay him.

But she couldn't stand beside his bed and watch him suffer when there was something she could try.

"Max," Jayden warned, his voice growing sharper despite the pain. "Don't cross that line."

Mia looked at the towel in her hands, then at his swollen knee.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

Jayden frowned.

"What did you say?"

She stepped over the white tape.

Before he could stop her, Mia crept to the side of his bed and reached toward his injured leg, the warm towel trembling slightly between her fingers.

Jayden's eyes widened.

"Don't you dare touch—"

Mia placed the towel gently against his swollen knee.

And the moment her hand settled over the cloth, Jayden caught her wrist.