Chapter 29
Aika’s POV
“I thought knowing the truth would give me peace. But maybe… knowing is just the start of another kind of pain.”
---
The rain started just after sunset.
Not the loud, dramatic kind. Just soft and slow, tapping against the window like someone gently knocking, asking to be let in.
I sat on the small couch, blanket wrapped around my legs. The painting from earlier sat unfinished on the corner. The colors had dried. The story I wanted to paint? I don’t even know what it was anymore.
Mia was upstairs, still quiet after everything earlier. June stayed beside me, scrolling on her phone but not really scrolling. I could tell she was just pretending to do something with her fingers, afraid of more silence.
I didn’t blame them.
Everything felt heavy since that talk.
We didn’t say much after. And sometimes, I wonder if that’s better—sitting in silence than saying something you’ll regret.
But that night, something in me felt different.
Like the storm already passed… but the mess it left behind was still there, waiting for me to clean it up.
I stood up and stretched a little, yawning as I walked to the kitchen. June followed silently, like a ghost with messy hair and sleepy eyes. I opened the fridge and stared at it for a good full minute.
“Do you ever just stand here and forget what you wanted?” I muttered.
June chuckled softly behind me. “Every single night.”
I smiled a bit.
“Want some hot choco?” I asked her.
She nodded. “If it’s the one with extra milk and no fake marshmallows.”
“No promises,” I teased.
We sat on the floor after, the mugs warm in our hands. The sound of rain outside was the only music playing. It was peaceful. Almost enough to make me forget.
Almost.
But not really.
“Do you still talk to him?” I asked suddenly.
June’s eyes blinked at me, caught off guard. “Who?”
“Julius.”
She hesitated. “No… I mean. I haven’t. Not directly. But…”
“But?”
“He sent something. Once. For you.”
I looked at her. “What do you mean?”
June lowered her mug. “I kept it. I didn’t know if I should show it to you. I mean… you were already—” she stopped. “Mia knows too.”
That made my stomach turn a little.
“You both knew?”
She nodded, guiltily.
I wanted to be angry again. But I was just tired.
“What is it?”
“A letter,” she said. “But it’s… weird. Like he didn’t say anything clear. Just… his usual dramatic self. Talking in codes and weird phrases.”
That sounded like Julius. Cryptic. Strange. Complicated.
Just like how he lived.
I didn’t say anything else after that. Just sat there, sipping my drink while my chest felt like it was being pulled in a thousand directions.
Why did he keep doing this?
Even gone, he still had a hold on me.
---
Later that night, I stayed awake in my room. The letter sat on my desk now, unopened. June gave it to me before heading to bed.
It was small. Cream paper. A little crumpled at the edges. My name was written in his handwriting. I could recognize it anywhere.
But I couldn’t open it yet.
My phone buzzed. A message.
From Noah.
“Still awake?”
I stared at it. Then typed back.
“Yes.”
“Want to come outside?”
I frowned. Then peeked through my curtains.
And there he was.
Standing outside the gate like it was completely normal to appear at almost midnight in the middle of rain.
I quickly grabbed a hoodie and tiptoed down the stairs. I slipped out quietly, barefoot, just socks on. Cold air hit my face the moment I stepped out, but I didn’t care.
Noah looked up when he saw me. His hair was wet, sticking to his forehead a little. He didn’t have an umbrella. Just a jacket. And that same calm-but-messy look he always had.
“You’ll catch a cold,” I said, walking up to him.
“You came out too,” he replied with a smirk.
“I didn’t expect to find a statue outside my house.”
He chuckled. “Sorry. I needed some air. And maybe a little company.”
We stood there for a few seconds. Not saying anything. Just… listening to the rain again.
“Why are you here, Noah?”
“I don’t know,” he said honestly. “Maybe I just needed to see that you’re okay.”
I laughed a little. “Do I look okay to you?”
He didn’t answer right away. Then he said softly, “No. You don’t.”
That caught me off guard.
“But you’re trying,” he continued. “And I think that’s brave.”
I looked at him. “You already knew, didn’t you? About Julius. About Ethan and Liam too.”
He nodded, slowly.
“I hate this,” I whispered. “I hate being the last to know.”
“You’re not,” he said. “You just… needed to be ready. And now, maybe you are.”
I stared at the ground. My socks were soaked now. Cold biting my toes. But somehow, his words warmed a small part inside me.
“I’m scared,” I admitted.
“Me too,” he said. “But we’re not alone, Aika.”
I looked up at him again.
Noah. The boy I once ignored. The boy I once thought was just there to fill space.
Now standing beside me in the rain, like he’s always been part of this mess too.
“Thank you,” I said.
“For what?”
“For not pretending.”
He smiled.
---
Back in my room, I sat on the bed. The letter was in my hand again.
I breathed in.
Then out.
And finally, I opened it.
The paper was rough. His handwriting messy. But I read the first line, and it made my chest hurt.
“If you’re reading this… then maybe I’m not too late.”
I’ll read the rest tomorrow.
Right now, I just want to rest.
Because whatever’s coming next… I need to be ready.
And maybe, just maybe… I won’t have to face it alone anymore.