Chapter 12 – A New Problem
LYNN
I stood there for a moment, looking at Ethan as he held up a plain, white shirt. The simplicity of it seemed so normal, yet the situation was anything but. He was offering it to me, his eyes avoiding mine, a small hint of awkwardness in his
expression.
“You can make do with this for now,” Ethan said, his voice a bit more strained. than usual. “I‘ ll make sure we get your clothes tomorrow.”
I stared at the shirt, the realization of what I had to do sinking in. I reached out for it, suddenly feeling very aware of the space between us. His bare chest caught my eye just as I took the shirt from him, and my face immediately heated up. I tried to focus. on the shirt in my hands, but my mind was still spinning from the awkwardness of the situation.
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“Thanks,” I mumbled, my voice barely above a whisper.
Ethan gave a small, almost embarrassed smile. “No problem. Just… make yourself comfortable.” He stepped back, giving me room to breathe. I nodded, still too flustered to say much, and rushed into the bathroom to escape the tension.
I locked the door behind me, leaning against it for a moment as I tried to calm my racing heart. His chest–his bare chest -was all I could see in my mind. It wasn’t like I had never seen a man without a shirt, but somehow, with Ethan, it felt different. More intimate. The thought made me blush all over again.
I quickly undressed and hopped into the shower, hoping the cool water would help clear my thoughts. The sound of the water splashing against the tiles was the only thing that kept me grounded for those few
minutes.
When I finished, I wrapped myself in a
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– A New Problem
towel and stepped out, only to freeze when I saw Ethan standing near the window, his back to me.
I hadn’t expected him to still be in the room, and my heart skipped a beat as I rushed to grab my clothes, awkwardly trying not to let him see me in just a towel.
“I didn’t mean to… I just… I was looking at the garden,” Ethan said quickly, his voice trailing off when he turned and saw me struggling. “Oh, sorry. I should‘ ve given you more space.”
I managed a small smile. “It’s fine. Really.” But in truth, I was trying my best not to feel uncomfortable. This wasn’t how I imagined my first night in a shared bedroom would go.
We stood there in silence for a moment, and then Ethan spoke again, this time with a little more uncertainty in his voice. “So, there’s no couch or anything. I don‘ t have anything I can use to sleep on the floor, so… we’ll have to lie together in the
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to bed. It’s the only option.”
дет
The words hung in the air, and my face flushed even deeper. Lying in the same bed tillas Ethan? I had expected a lot of labawkwardness tonight, but this? This was
Es something else.
“Are you sure?” I asked, trying to sound monchalant, though I could feel my heart sapounding in my chest.
Ethan nodded, his expression serious.
“It’s either that or we both sleep on the floor, and I think we can both agree that’s hot a good idea.”
vast
I swallowed, my thoughts racing. “I guess we don’t have much of a choice, do we?”
De for
gain.
Ethan shook his head. “We don‘ t. But just so we’re clear…” He met my gaze, his eyes soft yet firm, “I won’t touch you.
You don’t need to worry about that.”
vinh
yodded, not entirely sure how I felt about tol this. The tension between us was thick, o lie at Ethan’s assurance helped a little, even
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if I couldn’t help but feel a little uneasy.
With a sigh, I climbed into the bed, trying to ignore the butterflies fluttering in my stomach. I lay down, keeping as much distance as possible between us, though the bed was large enough to make that
easy.
As soon as my head hit the pillow, I felt my body relax. The exhaustion from the past. few days hit me all at once, and before I knew it, I was asleep.
The next morning, I woke up to the sound of voices downstairs. At first, I wasn’t sure if I had imagined them, but when I opened my eyes, I saw the faint light of morning creeping through the curtains. The noise persisted, a steady murmur that was too loud to ignore.
I glanced to my side, only to find that Ethan wasn’t in the room. The bed beside me
was empty and he was nowhere to be seen. I felt a pang of disappointment, but I brushed it off as I stretched and climbed
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out of bed.
I stepped quietly into the hallway, wondering what was going on downstairs. The sound of voices was louder now, and as I approached the staircase, I froze in my tracks.
There, standing in the grand foyer with bags in hand, were Nora and Javier. My stomach dropped as I saw them, the last people I expected–or wanted–to see today. They were supposed to be gone, out of our lives for good.
I froze on the stairs, staring at them in disbelief. I hadn’t been prepared for this. Why were they here? Why were they moving in?
Nora looked up and saw me first, her expression immediately turning into one of feigned sweetness. “Oh, Lynn! We‘ re moving in for a while,” she said, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
“Javier‘ s house had a gas explosion, and we’re staying here for safety.”
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My blood ran cold as I looked from her to Javier. It didn’t make sense. Why were they moving into Ethan’s family‘ s home? It felt almost like they were following me, trying to insert themselves into my life no matter where I went.
I couldn’t stop the anger that bubbled up inside me.
“Ethan!” I called out, my voice sharp.
A few moments later, Ethan appeared at the bottom of the stairs, looking as confused as I felt. He saw me standing there, staring at Nora and Javier, and immediately walked over.
“What’s going on?” I demanded, barely able to keep my voice steady. “Why are they moving in here?”
Ethan glanced over at his parents, then back at me, his expression hardening. “Javier‘ s house really did have a gas explosion. It’s not safe for them to stay there. My parents insisted they come here.
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for the time being.”
I couldn’t believe it. It felt like fate was
playing a cruel joke on me, and I was trapped in the middle of it.
“Great,” I muttered, “just what I needed.”
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