Chapter 18

brOOKE

Iwake up with sunlight streaming through the window, Chase snoring softly next to me, and the sound soothes me despite what today will bring.

Plans of murder, torture, and revenge.

I slip out from under Chase's arm, carefully picking his arm up and laying it across the pillow. I pick up the hoodie from last night, pulling it over my naked body before slipping out the room silently, closing the door behind me with plans of letting him sleep a little longer. I head downstairs and phone Harper wanting to give her an update of me and Chase being back together.

"Wait, so you're at his house now?"

"Yeah…I kinda stayed over last night."

"Damn Brooke, what happened to everything you were saying before?"

"I know, I just…"

"I get it, babe, I understand. You two are written in the stars." I smile at the comment because, honestly, I feel it too. Despite the horror that surrounds us, we found our way back to each other. I just hope wherever Nate is, he's happy and understands it.

"Did you read the note yet?"

It's like she knew what I was thinking.

"Not yet, but I am today. I wanted to read it with Chase. It feels like the right time, you know?"

"Yeah, I do, and I think it will help you both find closure no matter what it says."

"I think so too." I sigh. "How about you? How was the party after I left?"

"I met someone actually, a guy…" she sounds excited, and honestly, I'm really happy for her. "His name is Kyle, he goes to our college. He got invited to the party with some of his friends and thought it was just as crazy as I did. He's actually on the football team. I was outside getting some air, considering going home, when he came over, and we got talking about Nate…" She stops, going silent.

"It's okay, you can say his name, I like talking about him, we owe him that."

"Well, we uh started talking about him, and the football team are planning a memorial thing for when we go back, and he asked me if I wanted to get involved, and then we left the party and went for a drink just us two and then…well he kissed me, on the cheek but still."

I smile listening to her talk and get excited about a guy. As gutted as I am for Asher, she needs to stay away from this—from all of us right now.

"Well, I'm excited to meet him properly, I remember him from some of the parties we went to after the games, but it will be nice to get to know the guy who's making my best friend smile again."

"Brooke," a voice calls out from the silent house from upstairs.

"I'm down here," I call back.

"Okay, go, go." Harper laughs. "Go have lots of morning sex." I laugh because little does she know we already had that, over and over again, unable to keep our hands off each other.

"I love you," I say.

"Love you too, babe." She hangs up just as Chase walks into the room.

"Harper," I say, waving my phone, and he smiles.

"She okay?" he asks as he wraps his arms around me and kisses my neck softly.

"Yeah… she, uh, actually was telling me about this new guy she met." He freezes for a moment as I feel him tense up, but then he relaxes.

"Good for her. Can't wait to meet him." He smirks before pulling away and walking over to start making a pot of coffee.

"Hey, no scaring him away or pulling any of that macho bullshit. Asher had his chance with her, and he decided to push her away time and time again."

He nods softly, a pensive look on his face. "Like I did with you?"

I sigh, walk over to him, stand on my tiptoes, and wrap my arms around his shoulders. "Maybe, but here we are now."

He smiles softly, but it doesn't quite reach his eyes.

"Listen, I get it, Asher is your friend, and you want to protect him, but Harper is mine and she needs to try and move on from him. She's hurting awfully right now, and if this guy can give her a little bit of happiness, then I'm all for it."

He nods, turning back to his coffee pot.

"So, what did you need to do this morning?"

I hop up on the kitchen counter. "Hmm?" I ask curiously.

"You said you couldn't train this morning because you were busy but would go this afternoon instead?"

"Oh, uh… I was hoping to spend some time with you because, well…Harper found a note Nate wrote. It's addressed to me."

"Didn't the police clear the house out?"

I nod. "Yeah, but she saw it and took it before they had a chance too. She figured out what it was and didn't want it to incriminate any of us."

He raises his eyebrow. "Sneaky."

I nod, laughing softly, "But uh, I was hoping we could read it together?"

He turns around, placing his hands on my exposed thighs. "If you want me to, then I will, but I need to know, baby—will whatever is written on that note change things between us?"

I inhale sharply, thinking about it for a moment. "No, I love you, I'm in love with you, Chase." Our eyes lock as my fingers caress his jaw. "Nothing could change that, and at the end"—my voice cracks with emotion—s"when he… I mean, he said…" His arms pull me into a hug as I remember Nate's final words to us both.

"Okay, let's read it. Where is it?"

"Not here. I was hoping we could go to the park. Me and Nate used to go there after classes and just relax before heading back to the dorms or home over the years. It feels right to read it there."

"Whatever you think is right, baby." He kisses me on the forehead before turning back to the coffee.

I can do this, I think.