Glass Hearts [BL]-Chapter 243: Everyone Cries at Up

Ash’s POV

I really can’t tell them about The Coil. Or about the Circle’s secret.

It isn’t my story to tell.

Ugh.

"You guys shouldn’t worry too much," I said, forcing a laugh. "It’s nothing serious. They just wanted some information about Dominic’s family, that’s all."

June’s eyes went wide. "Are you sure?"

I hated lying to her. She always looked straight through me, like she could see the truth just sitting there behind my face.

But telling them about The Coil meant telling them about everything... Dominic, the Circle, what happened last summer. And that secret was too dangerous to risk.

Every lie added this weight. If I told them the truth, I’d drag them under with me.

So, I did what I do best. I dodged.

"So, Marcus," I said quickly, "how’s your new school?"

June narrowed her eyes. "He’s doing that thing again."

"What thing?" I asked, trying not to look guilty.

"The thing where he changes the topic," she muttered.

I stared at her. "No, seriously, I just wanted to know."

Marcus folded his arms, sighing. "Actually... I also came to say something important."

June folded her arms. "Now you two already changed the topic."

He gave her a flat look. "Ha-ha. Very funny." Then his voice softened. "No. I mean it. I wanted to say... I’m sorry."

Both of us blinked.

"You’re... sorry?" I repeated. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

He nodded, rubbing the back of his neck. "Yeah. For being a jerk. For walking out. For making it all about me when it wasn’t. I thought ghosting you guys would make me feel better, but honestly, it just made me miserable."

June’s face immediately softened.

"I was being immature," Marcus went on. "You two had your chaos and your thing... whatever," he gestured between us, "and I felt left out. Dumb, right?"

I shook my head. "Not dumb."

He chuckled weakly. "Okay, maybe not dumb. But definitely childish. I went to my new school thinking I’d find better people, but everyone there just talks about themselves. No one actually listens. No one laughs about dumb stuff or stays up till 3 a.m. arguing over which TikTok trend is the cringest. I missed you guys so much I almost texted you a meme."

I grinned. "Almost?"

"Yeah," he said, smirking. "Then I remembered I was still mad."

June snorted, wiping her nose. "He missed our chaos."

"Exactly," Marcus said softly. "I missed it. I missed you guys. Our trio. The way we just... fit."

He paused, then his voice dropped lower. "I kept thinking you’d moved on without me," he said quietly. "And I hated how right that felt. Watching you both get close to the Circle, seeing you laugh with them..." he shook his head, "it made me feel replaceable. Like the space I used to have just... closed."

June let out a small laugh. "But no one can replace what we had. No one even comes close."

"You’re right," I said softly. "No one can."

Marcus looked up, startled.

"Marcus, you were the first friend we made when we started at Blackwell two years ago," I smiled softly. "You made us feel accepted, even when everyone else saw us as the scholarship kids. No one could ever replace that."

June sniffled. "Oh my God, stop talking, you’re gonna make me cry." I started fanning myself.

Marcus blinked. "Wait...are you crying?"

She glared. "I’ve been emotional since morning. My hormones!"

He grinned and pulled her into a hug. "Well, if you start crying, Ash will cry too. He’s a sympathy and ugly crier."

"I am not," I muttered, already sounding like someone who definitely was.

June laughed against his shoulder. "You so are. You sobbed during that Pixar movie."

"That was Up, June! Everyone cries at Up!"

Marcus chuckled, slinging his arms around both of us. "God, I missed this. You two being emotional trainwrecks and me pretending I’m emotionally stable."

"You are not," June said.

"Yeah," I added. "You’re one of us. Full-time emotional disaster."

He sighed dramatically, but his eyes softened again. "Fine. But if either of you start crying again, I’m charging emotional support fees."

We all laughed.... the kind of laugh that hurts your chest but somehow makes you feel lighter.

Suddenly, June’s phone buzzed on the table.

She picked it up, glanced at the screen, then looked at me.

"It’s Ian," she whispered.

My stomach instantly dropped.

Of course it was Ian.

I could already feel my chest tightening again, like my heart wasn’t sure if it should beat faster or just stop altogether.

She answered quickly. "Hey! Have you been able to talk to Dominic?"

I watched her face closely, trying to read his tone from her expressions... the tiny frown forming between her brows, the sigh that escaped her lips.

There was a pause.

Then she nodded. "Okay... okay, just..call me when you can, alright?"

Another pause.

Her expression fell, then she whispered, "Ian...?"

But the line had already gone dead.

She lowered her phone, staring at it, and shook her head.

I swallowed hard. "What did he say?"

June blew out a shaky breath and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. "He said Dominic’s avoiding everyone. He tried getting to him, but security wouldn’t let him through. Apparently, Dominic looked.." she hesitated, "off. Like he wasn’t himself."

I felt something heavy drop in my chest.

That sounded exactly like the Dominic I was scared to imagine, the one buried under his father’s control.

Marcus folded his arms, watching her. "So Ian couldn’t even get to him?"

She shook her head. "No. He said Dominic just walked away."

I rubbed my palms together, restless. "That doesn’t make sense. He wouldn’t just ignore Ian unless..." I trailed off, not wanting to finish the thought.

The silence stretched for a second before Marcus cleared his throat.

"So, Ian, huh?" he said, giving June a sideways glance. "You two like... a thing now?"

Her head snapped toward him. "Hmmm.. It’s.. It’s complicated.

Marcus raised an eyebrow, smirking. "Complicated as in you like him but pretend you don’t or complicated as in you don’t know if he likes you back?"

June shot him a glare. "Complicated as in..shut up. Ash is about to cry!"

He grinned wider. "Ah. So the first one."