Maya POV
I never liked silence.
Not the kind that wrapped around you after something exploded. Not the kind that followed a storm of feelings you didn’t ask to feel. And that’s exactly what filled the parking lot after I saw Alex watching us.
He didn’t move at first.
Noah hadn’t seen him yet—he was still holding my hand, unaware of the shadows creeping in behind us. But I saw it. The way Alex’s face twisted. Not just in anger. No. It was something more complicated. Deeper.
Pain.
“Noah,” I whispered, gently pulling my hand back.
He blinked, brows furrowing as he followed my gaze. And then his whole body went stiff.
Alex took slow, deliberate steps toward us, like he was trying to keep it together. But his clenched jaw, the tension in his shoulders, the fire in his eyes—it was all bubbling beneath the surface.
“I warned you,” he said.
Noah didn’t flinch. “Alex—”
“I warned you,” Alex snapped, louder now. “I told you not to screw this up. I told you not to do this to me again.”
“To you?” I asked, stepping forward. “Alex, I’m not a thing that can be taken. I’m not—”
“This isn’t about you, Maya,” Alex bit out, and that cut more than I wanted to admit.
Noah’s expression darkened. “Don’t talk to her like that.”
Alex laughed bitterly. “Oh, now you want to defend her? After sneaking around? After kissing her while still working with me on the same campaign?”
“We weren’t sneaking,” Noah said through gritted teeth. “And I didn’t steal her, Alex. She chose me.”
My breath caught.
I looked between them—two brothers, bound by blood but divided by everything else. Pride. Pain. Their father’s impossible expectations. Their unspoken war. And now… me.
Alex turned to me, voice quieter but just as sharp. “Did you ever think about what it would look like? What it would mean? You know the history. You know what he’s done before.”
“I didn’t choose this to hurt you,” I said, my throat tight. “I just—”
“Fell for him?” he finished, and for the first time, his voice cracked. “Just like everyone else eventually does.”
Noah stepped forward, fists clenched. “This isn’t about who gets the girl, Alex. This is about you always needing to win. About you hating that I finally got something you didn’t.”
“Oh please,” Alex scoffed. “You think this is about winning? You think I care about some stupid rivalry? No, Noah. I cared about her.”
The world went still again.
“I cared about you too,” Alex added, eyes suddenly shining. “Once.”
Noah didn’t answer. He couldn’t. The tension was unbearable.
Alex looked at me again, but this time… there was no anger. Just disappointment. That hurt the most.
“I’m not mad that you picked him,” he said. “I’m mad that I let myself believe—for even one second—that maybe this time, he wouldn’t destroy something I loved.”
Noah took a sharp breath. “You don’t know what I’ve been through. You don’t know what I’ve sacrificed—”
“You sacrificed me,” Alex interrupted, voice breaking. “Over and over. First our childhood. Then every opportunity. Every ounce of trust. And now… this.”
Silence.
I didn’t know what to say. Because no matter what Noah and I had… this wasn’t a win.
Alex stared at us for a second longer, waiting, maybe hoping someone would say something—anything—that would fix what just broke.
But no one did. So he turned. And walked away. Without another word.