HIERARCHY IN LOVE

SINCE THAT NIGHT

AIDEN

Pale light is seeping through the blinds, slicing across Kaito’s room in clean, unfamiliar lines. For a second, I didn’t move. I stayed still, listening to the quiet hum of the building, to the steady proof that I’d made it through the night without slipping.

Kaito was asleep on the other side of the bed.

I sat up slowly, careful not to make the mattress creak, and scanned for my hoodie. Found it draped over the chair where I’d dropped it last night.

I pulled it on, heart thudding louder than thunder. My phone was in my pocket—no new messages. That was my cue to exit.

I didn’t wake him.

I eased the door open, slipped into the hall, and let it click shut behind me as softly as I could. The corridor was empty, early-morning quiet swallowing my footsteps as I headed for the stairs.

By the time I reached the dorm exit, my pulse was finally slowing.

Back in my room, Liam was still out cold, mouth open, laptop abandoned on his desk. Normalcy, waiting for me like it always had.

I sat on my bed and exhaled.

The dares were over.

Kaito had no reason to text me.

Just the project.

My phone buzzed as if to contradict me.

A new notification popped up—class group chat.

Professor Hale:

Presentation due this Friday.

I stared at the screen, then locked it without responding.

The presentation day arrived quite fast.

I hadn’t seen Kaito since that morning.

By the time our turn came, my nerves had nothing to do with grades.

We stood at the front of the room while the projector hummed to life. Kaito adjusted the slides .

I took my place beside him, hands loosely clasped.

“Whenever you’re ready,” the professor said.

Kaito glanced at me. “You want to start?”

“Sure,” I replied, a beat too fast.

I launched into my section—methodology, data points, things I could recite in my sleep. My voice was steady. Controlled.

He picked up seamlessly, finishing my thought like we’d rehearsed it. Because we had. Because we worked well together.

When the Q&A came, someone asked a question that technically belonged to my section. Kaito answered it anyway, then caught himself and looked at me.

“ but Aiden can expand on that.”

When it was over, the professor nodded approvingly. “Good balance. Clear collaboration.”

I felt the weight of that word settle between us.

As we packed up, our hands brushed reaching for the same cable. We both pulled back instantly.

“Sorry,” we said at the same time.

A couple of people snickered. Nothing unusual. Just awkward partners.

Kaito gave me a small, almost-smile. “Good job.”

“You too.”

Then we walked in opposite directions.

No lingering. No looking back.

In the cafeteria, I felt his gaze before I saw him. Kaito stood across the room with people from his department, laughing. When his eyes met mine, he just held the look for a brief, quiet second.

Then he looked away.

I did too.

In the hallway, we passed each other head-on.

“Hey,” he said.

“Hey.”

In class, it happened again. A glance forward. A look caught. Sometimes I was too late. Sometimes he was.

Back in my room, Liam was already sprawled on his bed, laptop open.

“So,” he said finally, shutting the laptop, “how’s it been since the dares ended?”

I froze for a second, caught off-guard by the casual way he asked. “Fine,” I said, keeping my tone light. “Normal.”

“Normal, huh?” He raised an eyebrow, eyes narrowing just slightly. “Even after… that night?”

I stiffened, remembering the last dare in Kaito’s room. The quiet. The proximity. The moments I couldn’t fully control.

“What night?” I asked smoothly, leaning back against my desk.

Liam laughed softly, shaking his head. “The one with Kaito. You didn’t tell me anything. You walked in the next day like nothing happened.”

“Because nothing did,” I said quickly. “Just… project stuff. That’s all.”

“Uh-huh. Sure. Whatever you say.”

I gave a tight smile, letting the subject drop. Liam didn’t push.But the weight of that night was still there, unspoken, and it made ‘normal’ feel like the hardest word in the world to live up to.