Chapter 296

Why was Wayne calling so late? I frowned as Hayden added, "He's sent you a few messages, too." I still felt groggy as he handed me the phone. Everything was a blur, and I was too drained to think straight. Hayden gave me a reassuring look and said, "You don't have to answer if you don't want to."

I hesitated, my thumb hovering over the screen, unsure whether to pick up. Before I could decide, the call went to voicemail. I took the phone and opened the messages. They were unread messages from earlier that morning:

[Rea, can we meet up?] [Rea, there's something I'm not sure if I should tell you.] [Rea, please reply when you see this.]

He'd sent those in the morning, and there were two more from the afternoon:

[Rea, I'm waiting for your reply.] [Rea, are you really busy?]

Seeing them all lined up, I could practically feel Wayne's anxiety. He'd been waiting for me to respond all day. Whatever he was debating whether or not to tell me, it had to be something big. Wayne's always been like an older brother to me, protecting me from anything that might hurt. So, if he's this worried, what could it be?

After a few seconds of hesitation, I decided to call him back. He picked up almost instantly. "Rea, where are you?"

"What's going on?" I asked, skipping straight to the point.

There was a pause. Just as I was about to press him, he asked, "What's wrong with you?" He must have caught the exhaustion in my voice, but I was more concerned about what he had to say. "I'm fine. Seriously. What do you need to talk about?"

"Can we meet up now?" he asked.

I was lying in a hospital bed, so meeting him in person wasn't exactly an option. I was about to suggest he just tell me over the phone when the door swung open. Lena stormed in, her face set in a scowl. "You wake up and the first thing you do is make a call? What urgent business could you possibly have? Do you not care about your health?"

I quickly covered the phone, not wanting Wayne to hear, but it was too late. His anxious voice came through: "Rea, are you sick? Are you in the hospital?"

Chapter 297

Oh, no way was she getting out of this one. I tightened my grip, practically pouting. "Nope, I need to know now."

Lena rolled her eyes and poked my forehead. "Fine, fine. He asked me if I still liked him."

"What?" My jaw dropped. "He actually said that? Like, straight up?"

She nodded, giving me a small half-smile. I squeezed her arm. "And? What did you say? Please tell me you didn't chicken out and deny it!"

"Do I look like a coward to you?" She raised an eyebrow.

I blinked at her. "Wait, so… are you guys, like, together now?"

She snorted. "Oh my God, you make it sound like we're having some scandalous affair."

"Stop stalling and just tell me what happened!" I said, practically bouncing with impatience.

Lena bit her lip. "Well, what do you think he said?"

Ugh, she was going to make me guess. I thought back to the way Nate looked at her the other day and joked, "Lena, I've had feelings for you for a long time."

She snorted. "He only said a few words."

"Few words?" I blurted. "Like, 'I like you'? Or even better, 'I love you'? No way. Was he that direct?"

Lena flicked my forehead. "Nope. He just said, 'I know.'"

"What?" I stared at her, completely thrown. "And then?"

"There was no 'then'," she said with a bitter smile. "Pretty much the nicest way to get rejected, right?"

I was speechless for a moment. Lena gave me a small, sad smile. "Not every story has a happy ending, so don't overthink it."

She stood up, but I grabbed her hand again. "So you guys just had dinner and that's it?"

"We didn't even get that far. Retta called him away before we finished," she said, tapping my nose. "Seriously, stop worrying about me and get some rest."

She left the room, and I lay there, still trying to process everything. A soft knock broke the silence. I figured it was Hayden coming back, but when the door swung open, my breath caught in my throat at who actually stepped inside.