Page 189 of Before We Were

Jay falls in step beside me as we navigate the human labyrinth. Outside mirrors the chaos—more bodies, more noise, weed smoke hanging thick as fog. The firepit blazes like a warning signal, surrounded by guys laughing too loud, bottles glinting dangerously in their hands.

And there he is.

Jake sways on his feet, beer clutched like armor, drunker than when he stormed out earlier. He spots me before I can speak, throwing his arms wide like he's center stage in his own tragedy.

"Well, look who it is!" His voice cuts through the night like shattered glass, sharp with something darker than alcohol. "The prodigal son! You just don't quit, do you?" He turns to the girl beside him, who clings to his waist like she's afraid he'll dissolve into smoke. "Kelsie, you know my brother Nate? I'm sure you've probably hooked up at some point, right?"

The girl shrinks away from his venomous words.

I clench my jaw until metal floods my mouth but keep my voice steady as still water. "Let's go. We're leaving."

He barks out a laugh that sounds nothing like my brother, lifting his beer in mock salute.

"Nah, I'm good right here, thanks."

He drains the bottle in one go, throat working like he's trying to swallow more than just alcohol, and someone hands him a fresh one like feeding kindling to a fire.

"Jake, I'm fucking serious. Let's go."

He stumbles closer, firelight dancing in his glassy eyes like fever dreams.

"Why are you even here, Nate? I don't need you to babysit or protect me anymore."

Frustration tangles in my chest like barbed wire. He doesn't understand—everything I've done, my whole life, has been about shielding him from the pain that's haunted our family like a curse. But I swallow the words. He wouldn't hear them anyway, not through the walls of alcohol and anger he's built around himself.

"Nora was worried about you," I offer instead, truth extended like an olive branch.

His smirk turns sharp as a blade. "Sure she was." He pauses, voice cutting deeper than any knife. "Tell me, have you fuck??—"

"I'm going to stop you right now before you say something you'll really regret." My words sharpen to a razor's edge, warning wrapped in steel. "You're drunk and need to get your ass home."

"Oh, I know exactly what I'm saying." He steps closer, beer sloshing like blood as he points at me with unsteady precision. "I should have known she'd always choose you. No matter how fucked up you are, no matter what it costs, she'll always choose you. And that's what will destroy her someday. You can't be stupid enough not to see that."

Each word slices into wounds I've been trying to ignore, reopening them with surgical accuracy. Would she always choose me? And if she did, was that salvation or damnation? Was I toxic for her, dragging her into my darkness in ways I refused to acknowledge?

Before I can respond, Jake gets in my face, anger radiating off him in waves hot enough to rival the fire. But before things can escalate into something irreparable, Ollie appears with Mia and Camilla trailing behind like shadows.

"All right, that's enough," Ollie says, voice calm but solid as bedrock. His eyes move between us, assessing the situation like a bomb tech. "Nate, take Nora home. I'll look after our boy here."

Jake snorts, turning away like we're beneath his notice.

Ollie leans closer to me, voice low. "Go find my sister and make sure she's okay. I'll bring Jake back."

I hesitate, eyes lingering on Jake, who's already laughing with strangers like nothing happened, like he hasn't just torn open wounds that might never heal.

Finally, I nod, the weight of everything unsaid heavy as lead. "Thanks."

Ollie grips my shoulder, the gesture grounding. "Just get her home safe, yeah?"

I don't need to be told twice.

Some fires you can't extinguish—you can only watch them burn and try to salvage what remains.

Jay and I push back through the crowd, bass pounding like war drums in my chest. Jake's words echo in my head, but I force them down like bitter medicine. Right now, I need to find Nora and get her out of here.

"You good, man?" Jay asks, voice low as grave dirt.

Before I can answer, my entire body locks up like I've been struck by lightning.

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