Page 109 of Mortala
I don’t even have to say anything because Morgan immediately starts shaking her head, panic flashing across her face.
“No, no, please just listen to me, okay?” she says quickly. “Nothing is happening between us now. This was a long time ago. It was one time, and we were both really drunk. It didn’t mean anything. It still doesn’t mean anything. I swear.”
I stare at her, trying to process the words coming out of her mouth.
“If that’s true, then why did you lie to me when I asked you the first time?” My voice is quieter than I expect, but the hurt behind it is impossible to hide. I can’t stand being lied to.
I’ve spent my entire life being lied to by the people who were supposed to love me and protect me. My father hid behind his cruelty. My mother hid behind her silence. Everyone always had a reason for keeping things from me, but the outcome was always the same. I was left to deal with the truth after everyone else had already made the decision for me.
“Because I thought you wouldn’t trust me anymore,” Morgan admits. “I thought you’d feel uncomfortable around me.”
I blink at her, almost unable to believe what she’s saying.
“Trust you?” The words come out before I can stop them. “Morgan, trust isn’t something you get to keep by hiding things from someone. Trust is earned.”
My throat tightens as I look at her. “And this isn’t how you do it.”
I push myself up from the table, needing space before I say something I’ll regret. Before I can take another step, her hand wraps around my wrist. The second she touches me, my body reacts before my mind does. I pull away instinctively, and the hurt that crosses her face almost makes me feel guilty. Almost. Because she’s looking at me like I’m the one who just betrayed her.
The irony of it makes my chest ache. She’s looking at me like she’s the one with a knife in her back, except I’m the one who’s been bleeding.
I shake my head, disappointment replacing the anger I was feeling moments ago. “I can’t do this right now, Morgan.”
I don’t give her the chance to respond. I turn away and walk toward the elevators, leaving her sitting there behind me. I don’t need this right now, not when Miles is still gone and every instinct I have is screaming that something is wrong.
When I step into the elevator, I immediately pull out my phone again to check for any notifications. I don’t know why I keep expecting something to be different when I look, but a part of me is still holding onto the hope that maybe Miles responded and my phone just didn’t alert me. Maybe he called and I somehow missed it. Maybe there’s a reasonable explanation for why I haven’t heard from him yet.
There’s nothing. No missed calls. No messages. No notifications. Just an empty screen staring back at me.
My stomach twists as I scroll through my contacts and stop on Julius’ name. If Miles isn’t answering, maybe Julius will. Maybe they’re together and they’re both just too distracted to check their phones. I press the call button and bring the phone to my ear, waiting for the sound of it ringing, except it never comes. After a few seconds, the call goes straight to voicemail.
I pull the phone away from my ear and stare down at the screen, confusion settling in. That’s weird. Maybe it’s just the elevator. I know service can be spotty in places like this, so I force myself not to overthink it. I’ll try again once I get upstairs.
When the elevator doors open, I make my way back toward Hudson’s room, trying my best to convince myself that everything is fine. I’m clearly just letting my anxiety get the better of me. There’s totally a perfectly logical explanation for why neither of them is answering.
I quietly step inside Hudson’s room and immediately see that he’s still asleep, his body resting peacefully beneath the hospital blankets while Nate sits beside him. Seeing them both there should calm me down, but instead, the worry only continues to grow.
I take one of the chairs beside the bed and pull out my phone again, dialing Julius’ number one more time.
Nothing.
The exact same thing happens. The call doesn’t ring. It doesn’t even attempt to connect. It just goes straight to voicemail.
“What the actual fuck?” I whisper under my breath.
A cold feeling starts to creep into my chest. I don’t want to acknowledge it. I don’t want to give the thought any power because I already know where my mind is going to take me, and I don’t want to believe it’s possible. But after everything that’s happened, after everything we’ve been through, I know better than anyone that bad things don’t just disappear because I want them to.
I scroll back through my contacts and press Miles’ name.
The same thing happens. Straight to voicemail.
My heart begins to pound harder, and I think I might get sick.
“Hey,” Nate says, noticing the expression on my face. “You alright over there?”
I look up at him, and I know I’m not hiding my fear very well because his expression immediately changes.
“No,” I admit, shaking my head. “I’ve been trying to get ahold of Julius and Miles, but every time I call them, nothing happens. It doesn’t ring or anything. It just goes straight to voicemail.”
