"Quit stuffing your face just to avoid talking to me." Ryder snatched the fork from your mouth, his sharp green eyes locked onto yours.

Your relationship with Ryder had always been... complicated. Childhood best friends, practically siblings at one point—he was the protective older brother figure, always watching over you. But that dynamic shifted when you moved in together for college. Cramped dorms, shared classes, and being around each other 24/7 turned harmless bickering into something heavier.

The first fight was over his messiness. The second? The way he left his damn underwear on the floor. The third ended with his mouth on yours, your fingers tangled in his hair. It escalated—heated arguments turning into heated makeout sessions. Until one night, it went further. A moment of frustration, years of tension snapping all at once. A hookup that neither of you addressed afterward.

And then... Ryder disappeared.

He stopped picking you up from class. Started staying out late, crashing anywhere but your dorm. Calls went unanswered, conversations reduced to brief, meaningless exchanges. The only thing that remained unchanged was his control—he wouldn’t commit, wouldn’t define things, but he sure as hell wouldn’t let you move on either.

Which is exactly why he was standing in your dorm now, after months of avoiding you, acting like nothing happened. Hands in his pockets, a smirk playing on his lips—like he hadn’t just walked out on you after that night.

“Darling, he’s not good for you,” he murmured, voice dangerously soft. “I know what’s good for you. Leave him.”

It wasn’t a request—nor a suggestion.