Submitting to my Ex Uncle-Chapter 223

Music Recommendation: Eyes Closed by Jisoo and Zayn.

......

The hallway was silent, except for the sound of her own heartbeat. She couldn’t tell what she was feeling. All she knew was that she needed him.

Amara stood before his door, unsure how she got there. Her hand lifted before she could think, and she knocked softly. She knocked twice. Then she froze, her fingers curling into her palm, as if she could pull the sound back in.

She drew her hand away and wrapped her arms around herself. The air felt thick, and heavier the longer she stood there.

They’d argued just hours ago. Words that should have ended things had been thrown between them, yet somehow she was here, on the other side of his anger, and her fear.

Her chest rose slowly. She should turn back.

However, the door creaked before she could move.

"Who’s there?" His voice came from inside. He sounded rough, cold, and displeased.

Elias.

Amara swallowed. Her throat ached just from hearing him. "It’s me."

The silence that followed felt alive. Then his tone broke. It softened in a way that made her chest twist. "Amara?"

Before she could answer, the lock turned. The door opened immediately. She blinked, knowing they’d never work out.

Elias stood there, barefoot, half-dressed, with a towel slung over his shoulder. His hair was damp, with a few drops of water running down his neck. His eyes flickered with something unreadable.

He looked tired, and guarded. And then... undone.

He stepped aside. "Come in."

Seeing her before his door was like a dream to him. He couldn’t believe it.

She hesitated only a second before walking past him. The air in the room was cold, carrying the faint scent of smoke and antiseptic. When she glanced down, her stomach knotted.

Bloody cotton wools filled the trash can near his table. The towel on his bed was also stained red.

She didn’t ask. It shouldn’t be her business.

He closed the door behind her, leaning on it for a moment. "You shouldn’t be here."

"I know." Her voice came out quiet. "But I couldn’t stay away."

Elias’s jaw clenched. His eyes moved to her face, tracing the outline of her exhaustion, and the way her hands fidgeted. "After everything you know," he said, barely above a whisper, "you still came."

Amara looked at him. She softly glared at him. "Don’t make it sound like that."

"Like what?"

"Like it’s mercy."

He exhaled sharply, stepping closer. "Then what is it?"

"I don’t know." Her eyes glistened. "Maybe forgiveness. Maybe self-destruction. I don’t know."

His inside faltered. His shoulders lowered slightly, and the anger in him turned into something tired, and desperate.

"I never wanted any of this. Damned if I do." he said. His voice cracked, almost inaudible. "I never wanted you to see this side of me."

She shook her head. "But I did. And now I can’t unsee it."

He nodded slowly, taking a step toward her. "So you came here to tell me it’s over."

Amara’s throat worked. "No," she whispered. "I came because I couldn’t breathe anywhere else. I don’t care what anyone says, just kiss me."

The silence between them trembled. It was thick with everything unsaid.

Elias reached for her hand but stopped midway. His fingers curled in the air, like he was afraid she’d pull away. "Amara...."

"By now, we know this." she said softly. "I can’t love you. Not after what I know."

He looked at her for a long, quiet moment. Then his voice dropped lower. "Then don’t look at what you know."

Her eyes lifted to his, confused.

Elias stepped closer until his breath brushed her skin. "Close your eyes," he whispered. "Pretend none of it happened. Pretend it’s just us. No past. No names. Just... us." 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

Amara’s lips parted, but no words came out.

"Let’s fall in love with our eyes closed," he said, his tone trembling between a plea and a promise. "If we open them, we’ll lose everything."

Her breath shuddered. The room seemed to shrink, pulling them together. The pain in her chest was too big for her chest to contain.

"Elias..." she began, but he was already closing the space between them.

His hand cupped the side of her face, with his thumb brushing the corner of her mouth like a question. She didn’t answer it. She didn’t need to.

The kiss broke through everything. It wasn’t a gentle kiss. It was raw, desperate, teeth and tears and everything they’d both been running from. She clutched at his shirt, dragging him closer until her back hit the wall. The sound that left her wasn’t a sob, it was relief and ruin all at once.

He kissed her harder, like he was trying to forget who he was, and he needed her to forget too.

They stumbled together, knocking over a chair. His hand found her waist, and the other tangled in her hair. She gasped into his mouth, her knees weakening, but he caught her before she fell.

The kiss deepened, hungry, and trembling. Every second of it felt like both an apology and a goodbye.

When they finally broke apart, their foreheads rested together, breathless and shaking.

Amara’s eyes were still closed.

"Don’t open them," he whispered, breathless. "Not yet."

Her voice trembled. "And when I do?"

He smiled, faint and broken. "Then it’ll all be gone." He wished. "The past can’t hurt us if we don’t look,"

Her hand found his chest, feeling the erratic beat beneath her palm. "You make it sound like we were never real."

"Maybe that’s the only way we can be together."

He kissed her again, slower this time, but heavier, like he was memorizing the taste of her before the world ended.

The room felt smaller. The light dimmer. Her breath caught as they sank to the floor together. The kiss never broke, and the world outside faded into nothing.

When her fingers brushed the bandage on his back, she didn’t stop him. She didn’t ask. She just let herself fall.

One last time.

Maybe this was forgiveness. Or maybe it was the beginning of her undoing. Either way, she didn’t open her eyes.