Emily's POV
The room quieted slightly, tension humming between them.
I felt heat creep up my neck. Was that... jealousy? Or just possessiveness?
Luca raised his hands. “Damn, relax. It’s just a game.”
Adam’s jaw was tight, but he said nothing else. I couldn’t tell what he was thinking. He still hadn’t looked at me once.
The game continued, and so did the tension. I wanted to get out of there. I needed air.
“I’m gonna get some water,” I whispered to Amanda.
“Want me to come?”
“No, I’ll be fine.”
I got up and headed toward the kitchen. As I turned the corner, I heard footsteps behind me. I didn’t expect to see Adam standing there.
“Hey,” he said, voice low.
My heart skipped. “Hey.”
We stood there, awkward silence stretching between us.
“You didn’t text,” he finally said.
I crossed my arms. “You didn’t exactly give me a reason to.”
He exhaled and ran a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry about last night and also yesterday... at the field. I didn’t know what to say.”
“You could’ve started with ‘hi,’” I said bitterly.
“I didn’t mean to ignore you.”
“Could’ve fooled me,” I shot back. “You made me feel like a stranger.”
“That wasn’t my intention.”
“Then what was?”
Before he could answer, we heard the loud and close sound of sirens.
“Shit,” someone yelled from the living room. “The cops!”
Panic erupted instantly. People scrambled, pushing past one another, trying to find exits
I barely had time to react before a firm hand grabbed my arm.
“Come on!” Adam’s voice cut through the chaos, urgent and loud.
He didn’t wait for me to respond. He just pulled me along. I didn’t hesitate.
Adam’s grip on my hand tightened as we sprinted across the backyard, the cold grass crunching under our feet.
We reached the wooden fence, and without speaking, Adam found a break in it and slipped through. I followed right behind him.
We didn’t stop running until we were several blocks away. Breathless, we finally stopped in a dimly lit alleyway between two apartment buildings.
I leaned against the brick wall, trying to catch my breath. Adam stood beside me, hands on his knees, chest heaving.
Out of nowhere, we both started laughing. Not because it was funny, but because the adrenaline made everything feel surreal.
“Wow,” I panted, my chest still rising and falling. “That was... intense.”
Adam shook his head, grinning. “Never a dull night with Redmond Creek, huh?”
I giggled, the tension slowly ebbing away. But as the laughter faded, a thick silence settled over us. Adam turned to face me.
“I’m sorry,” he said softly.
I looked at him. “For what?”
“About earlier. At the field. I... I freaked out, Em.”
“Why would you do that?” I asked, voice barely above a whisper.
He looked away for a moment, then back at me. “Because what happened between us this summer... it wasn’t just a fling to me. And I got scared.”
My heart fluttered in my chest. “I thought you didn’t care. You just walked past me like... like I didn’t exist.”
“I care too much,” he said, eyes intense. “That’s the problem.”
The way he was looking at me—it was like he was peeling away all the walls I’d tried to build up. I felt my chest tighten.
“I missed you,” I whispered.
Adam took a step closer, his voice even softer. “I missed you too.”
His hand brushed against my cheek, slow and deliberate. I leaned into his touch, not even realizing how much I had craved this.
And then his lips were on mine.
The kiss was gentle at first, like we were both afraid to move too fast. But then it deepened, the way his hand cupped my jaw, the way my fingers curled into his hoodie. Everything melted away—the sirens, the chaos, the doubts.
We finally broke apart, breathless again, but for a completely different reason. His forehead rested against mine.
“I hate that we wasted days not talking,” I murmured.
He laughed and pulled at my cheeks playfully.
And just like that, the girl from yesterday flashed in my mind—the one he was with at the field. The one he smiled at and pulled her cheeks too.
Before I could stop myself, I blurted out, “Do you have a girlfriend?”