Page 56 of Glass Jawed
I press on.
“He apologized. For everything. For using me, for humiliating me. For hurting three people. Said he was confused, that he was going through something. Said he’s in therapy now. That he’s been figuring stuff out.”
Lucian scoffs under his breath. A sharp exhale. It hurts more than I expected.
“He wasn’t making excuses,” I add quickly. “He owned up to it. I didn’t forgive him—I just... acknowledged it. That’s all.”
I pause. Hoping he’ll say something. Hoping I haven’t shattered the fragile thing we’ve been building. So I decide it’s not wise to tell him that Tim apparently doesn’t regret me. Heshould. But I don’t want to hurt Lucian with that.
“He said I was first on his apology train. I’m guessing you’re probably next.”
Lucian finally looks at me. But it’s not the look I know. Not the warmth. Not the longing. Not even the pain.
It’s distance. Something very close to what I saw that dreaded night.
“I’m glad you told me,” he says at last, his voice devoid of inflection. “If he reaches out, I’ll talk to him.”
That’s it.
Nothing more.
No touch. No reassurance. Just... cold quiet.
I wait a few seconds, searching his eyes for something—anything—that might tell me we’re okay. That I didn’t just split us down the middle.
But I see nothing. Just... glass.
He shifts away from me. Pulls the covers up around his waist and stands.
Then, in a voice that sounds too much like the old Lucian—the version I met last year, the one who humiliated me—he mutters. “You better shower and get ready for your shift.”
My heart drops. He’s not yelling. He’s not even angry.
He’s just... gone.
I sit frozen for a moment.
Then I slowly slide off the bed and gather my clothes.
The silence is a pit, and I can’t climb out of it.
SIXTEEN
Lucian
“He said he wanted closure.”
Closure? Is that what we’re calling it now?
He wanted fucking closure, so he reached out toher?
He rips my life apart and then gets to sit across from her—my...girlfriend—to talk about his healing?
“For using me. For humiliating me.”
Andmyhumiliation? Where is the fucking remorse for making a damn fool out of me?
“For hurting three people.”
