Page 26 of Blurred Boundaries

Where’s my reward?

Why should I reward you? You haven’t even seen your results.

I’ll ace it, that’s for sure.

Until then.

So, you’ll give me a reward after results are out?

I’ll think about it

Will it be your arse? I want it to be your arse

Bye, Taj.

See you soon, Muffin.

Door is unlocked.

I stop over at Manifesto Market after leaving campus, to get dinner before driving to Mike’s apartment. The place is busy this time of day, with people talking over each other, cutlery clinking, and music playing in the background. I order something quick. While waiting for my name to be called, my mind drifts to Mike.

It has been like this since I left his place two weeks ago, a constant loop of thoughts that I can’t shut off. I keep replaying things he said, the way he looked at me, the way he touched me . . . If I’m being honest, the way we fit into each other’s lives doesn’t feel temporary.

By the time I’m back on the road, I’m still trying to keep my mind from wandering; I focus on my eagerness to see him. When I arrive, I don’t have to knock and wait for him to let me in. I simply open the door and walk inside. The familiar scent of the apartment greets me before I even shrug off my jacket, and a feeling of coming home settles over me.

He isn’t in the living room or the kitchen, so I drop the food on the counter and make my way to his room. I move quickly but stop when I see him coming out of the bathroom. I lean against the doorway, letting my eyes roam over his body freely. The sight of him does something to my brain chemistry every single time, and I feel that warmth spread through my chest again. It’s become a default reaction now; I’ve been feeling it a lot when I’m with him, and even when we’re apart. I even spent an embarrassing amount of time daydreaming about him when I was supposed to be studying. It’s kind of concerning.

The warmth turns into an ache. School resumes next week, and I still have no idea where we’ll stand once he’s back to teaching me again.

“Question,” I say, but it comes out rougher than I intend, so I clear my throat and push myself off the doorway and walk towards him. “Do you want to keep seeing me?” I stop in front of him, my hands coming up to his hip to caress them.

“What sorts of question is that?” He looks down at me with an unreadable expression.

My chest gives a heavy thud at that, and the ache intensifies. I drop my hands from his hips, already half turning and ready to bolt from his room before he says something I don’t want to hear.

“Why wouldn’t I want to see you?” he says before I can move any further. “You’re stuck with me until I have to return home.”

I should be relieved that he’s not booting me out right now, but instead my heart sinks at the thought of us having an expiration date. He’s leaving in the summer; I knew that from the start. I walked into this with my eyes open, fully aware that it would end, and still carried on because it was just meant to be fun. So, why does it feel like something vital is slipping away from me? Like I have no choice but to stand there and watch it happen? Why does it feel like I’m already losing something I don’t even have yet? Why can’t I just keep him here and hold on to him and continue loving him—without time running out, without this countdown ticking away in the background?

I’ll be damned.

Shit. How did I let this happen?

Taj Badmus does not fall in love. I have many, many years ahead of me for that, years to explore, to live without tying myself to anything permanent. Who even falls in love at twenty? What’s next? I get married at twenty-five? But even as the thought crosses my mind, I can’t bring myself to hate it. I don’t even find it remotely repulsive.

I actually kind of . . . want it?

Fuck my life.

“Taj?” Mike’s voice drags me back, but it’s the snap of his fingers in front of my face that yanks me out of my thoughts. “Where did you disappear to?”

I plaster on the fakest smile I can manage and I lean in, raising my mouth to his. He bends to meet me halfway and our lips connect in a soft kiss.

“I’m here with you,” I tell him.

I don’t add until summer.

He lifts me effortlessly and carries me to his bed where he proceeds to undress me, one piece of clothing at a time, his eyes never leaving mine. He starts peppering kisses down my body, from my cheeks to my neck, and down to my chest. When he reaches my nipples, he twirls his tongue around one before biting gently, and then he blows air over it to soothe it, sending ice prickling along my spine. He keeps going down until he reaches my aching cock. He wraps his hand around it, stroking from base to tip before running his tongue down my hard length, and when he lowers his mouth on me, I damn near come on the spot.