Chapter 3
The actor who played opposite me in the theater company was Ryan Cole.
After work that day, he invited me to dinner. He said he wanted to thank me for looking out for him over the past few weeks.
But halfway through the meal, I suddenly felt my chest tighten, and my vision started to blur. A few small hives broke out along my arm.
Ryan's face went pale, and he froze, completely at a loss.
That was when Alex showed up.
He pulled out an allergy pill and got me to swallow it, then rushed me straight to the hospital.
When I woke up, I saw Alex sitting by the bed, his face dark.
I'd had severe allergies to all kinds of things for as long as I could remember.
Ever since the time I nearly went into anaphylactic shock, Alex had made it his job to screen everything I ate, and he always carried allergy medication with him wherever he went.
Because of that, I'd gradually let my guard down. I had almost forgotten how dangerous my allergies could be.
I looked at the stormy expression on his face and braced myself for a lecture, lowering my head slightly.
But instead, Alex spoke in a low, strained voice, as if he had been holding everything in for a long time.
He said, "You told me you needed space, and I gave it to you. But the second I took my eyes off you, you ended up like this. And now you're having dinner with some random guy."
Every word was an accusation, but even then, he couldn't bring himself to be harsh with me.
Before I could say anything, Alex pulled me into his arms and nuzzled against me like a clingy golden retriever.
His eyes were rimmed with red, and the sight of it made my heart ache.
He whispered, "Jamie, whatever I did wrong, I'll fix it. Just don't shut me out like this, okay?"
His voice cracked as he added, "Watching you get close to someone else hurts worse than anything you could ever do to me."
When I really thought about it, Alex and I had been inseparable since we were kids. It was only natural that we'd feel a little possessive of each other.
Our families were neighbors growing up.
Alex's parents were always busy with work and rarely home, so my mom offered to let him stay with us whenever they were away on business trips.
From then on, Alex and I ate together, slept under the same roof, and became the closest of friends.
After the time I nearly died from an allergic reaction, Alex made it his personal mission to look after me.
He watched over every single meal I ate, breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
When I couldn't sleep, he'd tell me bedtime stories until I drifted off.
When the weather changed, he'd remind me to add or remove a layer, never missing a beat.
Even his own parents couldn't help but tease him, saying Alex treated me so well that his future wife would be jealous.
I figured things would calm down once we got older, but Alex only doubled down.
He became even more attached, if that was possible.
When it came time to fill out our college applications, he'd scored higher than I did on the SATs, but he still chose the same school and the same major.
After the semester started and he found out our dorms weren't in the same building, he went ahead and requested a transfer so we'd be together again.
Being around each other had become second nature.
These past few weeks, keeping my distance on purpose had been eating me alive, and I missed him more than I wanted to admit.
Right now, Alex was still waiting for me to say something.
I steeled myself and made a decision on the spot.
It was risky, but it was the perfect chance to test just how open Alex really was to being with another guy.