Straight Until You

Chapter 12 — His Past

Asher Reyes could not stop thinking about Mateo’s message.

“People act strange when they’re hiding things.”

The words replayed in his head all night.

Again.

And again.

And again.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Because suddenly every tiny thing about Nathaniel’s behavior felt different.

Not wrong exactly.

Just…

careful.

Too careful.

Asher hated that realization immediately.

A serious issue honestly.

An actual serious issue.

⸻

Thursday morning arrived cold and gray.

Rain still lingered faintly across campus while students rushed between buildings half-awake and miserable.

Normally, seeing Nathaniel would’ve improved Asher’s mood instantly.

Instead—

the moment Asher spotted him outside the student center, something twisted painfully in his chest.

Because Nathaniel looked relieved seeing him.

And somehow—

that guilt from yesterday was still there.

Dangerous.

Very dangerous.

Nathaniel smiled softly the second Asher approached.

Automatic.

Real.

Hopeless.

Usually that smile ruined Asher emotionally.

Today?

Today Asher found himself studying it carefully instead.

Searching.

A terrible sign honestly.

⸻

Nathaniel noticed immediately.

Of course he did.

Asher looked quieter today.

More observant.

And suddenly Nathaniel’s stomach dropped sharply.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Because for the first time—

Nathaniel genuinely felt afraid around Asher.

Not afraid of rejection.

Afraid of losing him completely.

A much worse feeling.

⸻

Nathaniel: “Morning.”

Asher nodded once.

Calm.

Too calm.

Asher: “You look tired.”

Nathaniel laughed softly.

Tiredly this time.

Nathaniel: “I didn’t sleep much.”

Asher’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Because that answer sounded honest.

And somehow—

that made everything worse.

⸻

Nathaniel walked beside Asher toward class while students passed around them loudly.

Usually these walks felt easy.

Natural.

Now every silence felt heavier.

Nathaniel kept trying to speak normally.

Trying to act normal.

But guilt sat painfully beneath every word.

And somehow—

Asher kept noticing.

Dangerous.

Very dangerous.

⸻

Then suddenly—

a voice called Nathaniel’s name from across the courtyard.

Female.

Sharp.

Familiar.

Nathaniel froze instantly.

A terrible sign.

Asher noticed immediately.

Of course he did.

Both of them turned toward the voice at the same time.

And Asher’s stomach dropped slightly.

Because the girl walking toward them looked angry.

Not casually annoyed.

Personally angry.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Nathaniel looked genuinely uncomfortable for the first time since Asher met him.

Dangerous.

Very dangerous.

⸻

The girl stopped directly in front of them.

Pretty.

Elegant.

Furious.

Wonderful.

Absolutely wonderful.

She crossed her arms immediately.

Girl: “So this is him.”

Silence.

Real silence.

Asher blinked once.

Nathaniel already looked exhausted spiritually.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Because suddenly—

Asher understood.

This girl knew something.

⸻

Nathaniel rubbed a hand across his face slowly.

Nathaniel: “Sienna.”

Sienna looked unimpressed instantly.

Sienna: “Don’t Sienna me.”

Asher stayed quiet beside him.

Watching carefully now.

Dangerous.

Very dangerous.

Because Nathaniel had never looked this nervous before.

Not even around Mateo.

And somehow—

that realization scared Asher more than anything else so far.

⸻

Sienna finally looked toward Asher directly.

Her expression softened slightly.

Not much.

But enough.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Sienna: “You should know Nathaniel’s an idiot.”

Nathaniel closed his eyes briefly.

Wonderful.

Absolutely wonderful.

Nathaniel: “Thank you for that.”

Sienna ignored him completely.

Naturally.

Sienna: “But he’s usually not cruel.”

Silence.

Real silence.

Asher’s chest tightened painfully.

Because suddenly—

everything inside him went cold.

Nathaniel looked horrified immediately.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Because whatever Sienna knew—

Nathaniel absolutely did not want her saying it.

⸻

Nathaniel: “Can we not do this here?”

Sienna stared at him blankly.

The disbelief was painful.

Sienna: “You should’ve thought about that before letting things get serious.”

Asher froze slightly.

Dangerous.

Very dangerous.

Because suddenly—

the atmosphere around them shifted completely.

Every instinct in Asher’s body screamed at him that something was wrong.

Very wrong.

⸻

Nathaniel stepped closer instinctively.

Toward Asher.

Not Sienna.

Toward Asher.

Like he already knew damage was happening.

Nathaniel: “Asher.”

The way he said his name made something crack painfully in Asher’s chest.

Because Nathaniel sounded desperate.

Actually desperate.

A serious problem.

⸻

Sienna noticed too.

And suddenly—

her anger faded slightly.

Replaced with realization.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Because apparently—

she hadn’t expected Nathaniel to look genuinely terrified.

Slowly, Sienna looked between them.

Then quietly—

Sienna: “Oh.”

Nathaniel looked worse immediately.

A disaster honestly.

An actual disaster.

⸻

Asher finally spoke.

Quietly.

Carefully.

Dangerously calm.

Asher: “What’s going on?”

Nathaniel’s chest tightened so painfully he could barely breathe.

Because suddenly—

this was it.

The moment everything broke.

And worst of all—

he deserved it completely.

⸻

Nathaniel opened his mouth.

Then stopped.

Coward.

Absolute coward.

Because somehow—

looking at Asher now made telling the truth feel impossible.

Not because Nathaniel wanted to lie.

Because he knew exactly what the truth would do to him.

Asher trusted him.

Looked for him automatically in crowds.

Relaxed whenever Nathaniel touched him.

And Nathaniel had built all of that on something ugly.

Something selfish.

The realization made him feel sick.

⸻

Sienna looked disgusted suddenly.

Not at Asher.

At Nathaniel.

Sienna: “You still haven’t told him.”

Silence.

Complete silence.

The world around them seemed to disappear instantly afterward.

Students still moved across campus nearby.

People still laughed.

Phones still rang.

But Asher heard none of it.

Because suddenly—

everything inside him went numb.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

⸻

Slowly, Asher looked toward Nathaniel.

And for the first time since meeting him—

Nathaniel looked away first.

That alone told Asher everything.

Dangerous.

Very dangerous.

Because Nathaniel Anderson never looked away.

Not from anyone.

Not ever.

⸻

Asher’s chest hurt.

Actually hurt.

Because somehow—

he already knew.

Maybe not the details.

Maybe not the full truth.

But enough.

Enough to understand betrayal when he saw it.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Because the worst part wasn’t anger yet.

It was disappointment.

Sharp.

Cold.

Devastating.

⸻

Nathaniel finally forced himself to speak.

Voice quieter now.

Rougher.

Nathaniel: “I was going to tell you.”

The second the words left his mouth—

Asher laughed.

Softly.

Not warm.

Not amused.

The sound hit Nathaniel harder than yelling would have.

Because Asher sounded hurt.

Actually hurt.

And suddenly Nathaniel realized something horrifying.

He would rather Mateo break his jaw than see that expression again.

⸻

Asher stepped back slowly.

Not dramatic.

Not angry.

Honestly worse.

Because now he looked guarded again.

Like every wall Nathaniel spent months breaking down had slammed back into place instantly.

Dangerous.

Very dangerous.

Asher: “Tell me what exactly?”

Nathaniel couldn’t answer immediately.

Coward.

Coward.

Coward.

The word echoed violently in his head.

⸻

Sienna suddenly looked uncomfortable.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Because even she looked like she regretted this now.

Quietly, she looked toward Asher.

Sienna: “There was a bet.”

Silence.

Real silence.

And suddenly—

Nathaniel watched Asher Reyes break right in front of him.

Not loudly.

Not dramatically.

Honestly—

that would’ve hurt less.

Instead, Asher just went completely still.

Like his body stopped knowing how to react.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Because Nathaniel had never seen Asher look fragile before.

Not once.

Then slowly—

almost carefully—

Asher looked toward Nathaniel again.

And the expression in his eyes nearly destroyed him instantly.

Not anger.

Not hatred.

Humiliation.

The realization hit Nathaniel like a punch directly to the chest.

Because suddenly he understood exactly what Asher was thinking.

Every flirt.

Every touch.

Every moment.

All of it probably looked fake now.

Calculated.

Manipulative.

Nathaniel stepped forward immediately.

Desperate.

Nathaniel: “Asher, listen to me—”

Asher stepped back again.

Instantly.

And somehow—

that hurt more than anything else so far.

Dangerous.

Very dangerous.

Because this was the first time Asher had physically pulled away from him.

Nathaniel felt panic rise violently in his chest.

Real panic.

The kind that made breathing difficult.

⸻

Asher couldn’t hear him properly anymore.

The courtyard around them blurred slightly while his thoughts spiraled violently.

A bet.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Because suddenly everything made horrible sense.

Nathaniel approaching him first.

The constant flirting.

The persistence.

The attention.

God.

Asher felt sick.

An actual physical ache spread painfully through his chest.

Because somehow—

despite every instinct warning him not to—

he had trusted Nathaniel completely.

And worst of all?

He had fallen for him.

A disaster honestly.

An actual disaster.

⸻

Nathaniel looked terrified now.

Actually terrified.

Asher noticed that immediately.

And somehow—

that made things worse.

Because part of him still wanted to comfort Nathaniel.

Even now.

Even after this.

What the f**k was wrong with him?

⸻

Sienna crossed her arms tightly.

Clearly regretting this entire situation now.

But she still looked angry at Nathaniel.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Because apparently—

this wasn’t some harmless joke even to the people around him.

Quietly, she looked toward Asher.

Sienna: “I didn’t know he let it go this far.”

Nathaniel looked physically ill beside her.

Nathaniel: “Stop talking.”

Sienna ignored him instantly.

Naturally.

Sienna: “The bet was stupid.”

A pause.

Then more quietly—

Sienna: “But he’s been in love with you for weeks.”

Silence.

Real silence.

Asher froze slightly.

Dangerous.

Very dangerous.

Because somehow—

that confession hurt too.

Maybe worse.

Since it meant none of this was simple anymore.

Not fake.

Not real.

Something twisted painfully between both.

⸻

Nathaniel rubbed both hands across his face roughly.

Frustrated.

Overwhelmed.

Desperate.

Nathaniel: “I was going to tell you myself.”

Asher finally looked directly at him again.

And Jesus Christ—

Nathaniel almost wished he would yell instead.

Because Asher looked devastated.

Quietly devastated.

Like somebody had reached inside his chest and cracked something open.

Asher: “When?”

Nathaniel couldn’t answer immediately.

And that hesitation—

that tiny hesitation—

destroyed whatever hope remained in Asher’s expression.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Because Nathaniel watched the exact moment Asher stopped trusting him.

⸻

Asher laughed softly again.

Still not warm.

Still painful.

Asher: “Wow.”

Nathaniel’s stomach twisted violently.

Because Asher sounded embarrassed now.

Humiliated.

And suddenly Nathaniel understood something horrifying.

Asher wasn’t just heartbroken.

He felt played.

The realization made Nathaniel hate himself instantly.

⸻

Students nearby had slowly started noticing the tension now.

Whispers spreading softly across the courtyard.

Nathaniel didn’t care.

At all.

Because the only thing he could focus on was Asher looking at him like he didn’t recognize him anymore.

A nightmare honestly.

An actual nightmare.

⸻

Then suddenly—

Asher’s phone buzzed.

The sound shattered the silence sharply.

Automatically, Asher looked down.

Luca.

Of course.

Interesting timing honestly.

Asher stared at the contact for one second before answering numbly.

Asher: “What?”

Luca immediately paused.

Because something in Asher’s voice clearly sounded wrong.

Dangerous.

Very dangerous.

Luca: “…Asher?”

Asher closed his eyes briefly.

Trying to breathe.

Trying not to completely fall apart in the middle of campus.

A serious issue.

An actual serious issue.

Nathaniel took one small step closer instinctively.

Asher noticed immediately.

And stepped back again.

The movement hit Nathaniel like a physical wound.

⸻

Luca’s voice sharpened instantly through the phone now.

Protective.

Alert.

Luca: “What happened?”

Silence.

Asher looked toward Nathaniel one final time.

And God—

Nathaniel would remember that expression for the rest of his life.

Hurt.

Betrayed.

Broken open in the quietest way possible.

Then finally—

Asher answered softly.

Asher: “He lied to me.”

And suddenly—

everything completely fell apart.