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The first time Noah called him Wyn it felt like something fragile being placed into his hands.
It was late afternoon in the university gym sunlight cutting through the high windows and laying gold across the polished floor. The squeak of rubber shoes the sharp echo of a ball against hardwood the shouts of teammates filled the air. Owyn had been sitting on the bleachers chin resting on his palm watching Noah run drills with that focused crease between his brows.
“Wyn!” Noah had called suddenly grinning as he jogged toward him sweat darkening the collar of his shirt. “You see that pass? That was for you.”
Owyn rolled his eyes but his heart did something embarrassingly soft. For you. Noah always said things like that. Casual. Effortless. As if affection was something he handed out without thinking. As if it didn’t land in Owyn’s chest and stay there for hours.
They were not boyfriends. Not officially. They never talked about it.
They held hands when crossing busy streets. Noah slung an arm around his shoulders in crowded hallways. They shared headphones on jeepney rides and sat too close in libraries. They kissed in quiet corners of campus buildings where no one really looked twice anymore.
But whenever someone asked “So what are you two?” Noah would just laugh. “We’re us.”
Owyn used to smile at that. Used to think it meant something poetic. Something deep.
Lately it just felt unfinished.
He wanted a label. He wanted to say “my boyfriend” without hesitating. He wanted to post pictures without wondering if it was too much. He wanted certainty.
Noah moved through life like he assumed Wyn would always be there. Like the sun would always rise and Owyn would always be beside him.
Maybe that was the problem.
Noah had never thought about losing him.
Until Aaron.
It happened after a game.
Noah’s team had won barely. The rival university gym was loud and humid filled with the smell of sweat and victory. Noah was pulled into interviews and post-game congratulations. Teammates shouted his name. A coach clapped his back. He was glowing adrenaline still in his veins.
Owyn waited near the sidelines hugging Noah’s varsity jacket around himself.
That was when Aaron approached him.
Aaron was tall broad-shouldered still in his red jersey hair damp and pushed back. He carried confidence like it was stitched into his skin.
“You’re Noah’s?” Aaron asked tilting his head.
“I’m Owyn.”
“I know. You don’t miss his games.”
There was something in the way he said it. Observing. Interested.
They talked about the match. About school. Aaron told him he looked unfairly beautiful under gym lights.
Heat crawled up Owyn’s neck.
Then Aaron asked casually “Do you have a boyfriend?”
The question fell heavy.
Owyn hesitated.
Images flashed in his mind. Noah’s hands at his waist in empty classrooms. Noah whispering Wyn against his lips. Noah smiling at him like he hung the stars.
But they had never said it.
“No,” Owyn answered softly.
Because it was true.
Aaron nodded slowly. “Can I get your number?”
It felt harmless. Just a number.
Noah was still in the locker room when Aaron saved it.
When Noah walked out hair damp and bag slung over his shoulder he caught the tail end of it. Aaron stepping away. Two fingers pointing at his eyes and then at Owyn. Call me.
Noah slowed.
“What was that?” he asked lightly but his jaw was tight.
“He just said hi.”
“He doesn’t look like the just say hi type.”
“You’re overthinking.”
Noah studied him for a moment before pressing a kiss to his temple. “Let’s go Wyn.”
The moment passed.
Except it didn’t.
Aaron started messaging. Memes first. Game clips. Then longer conversations. He remembered details. He asked about Owyn’s family. His classes. His dreams. He said things like You deserve someone who’s sure about you.
Owyn never knew how to answer that.
When Aaron invited him to a café he told Noah.
“I’m going out later” Owyn said sitting on Noah’s bed while he tied his shoes.
“With who?”
“A friend.”
Noah didn’t look up. “Okay. Text me when you’re home.”
That was it.
The café was warm golden. Aaron smiled at him like he had been waiting. They talked for hours. At one point Aaron’s fingers brushed his and lingered just a second too long.
Aaron took a photo. “You look good in this light.”
Owyn didn’t think about it until later that night.
Noah was in bed when he saw the story.
Two coffees. Warm lighting. Owyn’s soft smile across the table.
Good company after a long week.
The jealousy didn’t explode. It bloomed slow and ugly.
It started with a story. Noah was half-lying on his bed after practice muscles aching fingers lazily scrolling through Instagram when Aaron’s username appeared at the top. He almost skipped it.
He didn’t.
The café lighting was warm. The table was small. Intimate. Two cups of coffee. And across from Aaron smiling like he belonged there was Owyn.
Wyn.
Noah replayed it. He watched the way Wyn leaned forward chin resting on his hand eyes crinkling when he laughed. Aaron’s voice in the background saying something low and amused. Good company after a long week.
Good company.
Noah’s chest tightened so sharply he had to sit up.
Wyn had told him. I’m going to a café with a friend.
Friend.
The word tasted bitter.
Noah locked his phone and threw it beside him staring at the ceiling like it might give him answers. He told himself he wasn’t the jealous type. He trusted Wyn. He did.
But jealousy isn’t logical. It doesn’t care about trust. It cares about threat.
And Aaron felt like one.
The comments started next.
A fire emoji under Wyn’s mirror selfie.
You looked good tonight.
Missed you at the game.
Noah noticed everything. He didn’t mean to. But he did. He saw how fast Aaron viewed Wyn’s stories. How quickly he liked his posts. How naturally his name started appearing beside Wyn’s.
Then came the gym story. Aaron shirtless in front of the mirror. And behind him slightly blurred but unmistakable was Wyn sitting on the bench watching.
Caption: Guess who came to support.
“Support”
Noah felt something sour twist inside him. Wyn hadn’t said he was going to Aaron’s game.
That night when Wyn came over wearing Noah’s hoodie like he always did smiling soft like nothing was wrong Noah couldn’t hold it in.
“You went to his game.”
Wyn blinked. “Yeah he invited me.”
Noah’s laugh came out sharp and wrong. “Did he invite you to sit pretty in the background too?”
Wyn’s smile fell. “Why are you being like this?”
“Like what?” Noah snapped. “Like I don’t like seeing some guy parade you around like you’re already his?”
“He’s not doing that.”
“He is” Noah insisted voice cracking despite how hard he tried to keep it steady. “He is and you’re letting him.”
Silence filled the room thick and suffocating.
“And what am I supposed to say when he asks if I have a boyfriend?” Wyn asked quietly. “Because I don’t.”
That hit harder than anything.
Noah didn’t answer.
Because he couldn’t.
The worst one happened at Noah’s own game.
Aaron showed up. Red varsity jacket. Confident smile. And Wyn was beside him.
Laughing.
Noah saw Aaron lean down whisper something close to Wyn’s ear. Wyn laughed again shoving his shoulder lightly like it was easy.
Like it was natural.
Like they were already comfortable.
Noah missed two free throws.
His coach cursed. His teammates stared.
All Noah could see was Aaron’s hand brushing the small of Wyn’s back as they walked down the bleachers. After the game Noah didn’t even shower. He went straight out still in his jersey still sweating heart pounding so hard it hurt.
He grabbed Wyn’s wrist gently but urgently. “Can we talk?”
Aaron’s eyes flicked to their hands.
Calm.
Almost amused.
Everything good? Aaron asked casually.
Noah forced a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Yeah it will be.”
Outside the sky cracked open.
Rain started falling.
“What is this?” Noah demanded.
“What is what?”
“Why is he touching you like that?”
“He barely touched me.”
“He doesn’t barely look at you” Noah shot back. “He looks at you like he’s waiting.”
“For what?”
“For me to mess up.”
The rain got heavier. Soaked through Noah’s jersey. Clung to his skin.
Wyn looked tired. Not angry. Tired.
“You don’t own me Noah.”
“No” Noah whispered. “But I thought… I thought I had you.”
“You never said I was yours.”
There it was. The truth he had been avoiding.
Later that night Aaron posted again. A clear picture this time. Wyn sitting courtside smiling up at the camera. Aaron’s arm clearly behind him along the back of the seat.
Caption: Some people make losing worth it.
Noah felt sick.
He called immediately.
“Why does it look like that?” Noah asked pacing his room like a caged animal.
“Like what?”
“Like he’s your boyfriend.”
Silence.
“I’m the one who loves you” Noah blurted out the words ripping out of him before he could stop them.
The line went quiet.
“You love me?” Wyn whispered.
Noah dragged a hand down his face. “Of course I do. I’ve loved you. I just didn’t think I had to say it.”
“I did” Wyn replied softly.
[Two days later]
The rain was already heavy by the time Noah reached Owyn’s apartment.
It wasn’t the soft romantic kind. It was the kind that soaked through fabric in seconds. The kind that blurred streetlights and made everything look like a scene from a heartbreak movie.
Noah didn’t care.
He stood outside the gate jersey drenched hair plastered to his forehead chest rising and falling too fast. He had run most of the way there. Not because it was far. But because standing still felt impossible.
He knocked once.
Then twice.
The door opened.
Owyn froze.
“Noah? Oh my God why are you soaked?”
Water dripped from Noah’s chin. His eyelashes were clumped together from rain. He looked wrecked.
“Don’t— don’t go inside yet” Noah said breath uneven. “I just need to say this.”
“Are you insane? You’re freezing.” Owyn immediately grabbed his wrist and pulled him forward. “Get in here.”
Noah resisted slightly still talking words tumbling over each other. “I hate it. I hate seeing him post you. I hate seeing his hand near you and I—”
“Inside” Owyn insisted dragging him through the doorway.
The door shut behind them muting the roar of the rain.
Water pooled on the floor beneath Noah’s shoes. His jersey clung to his skin. He didn’t even seem to notice.
Owyn dried him off. Noah admitted everything. The jealousy. The fear. The hurt. The things he hadn’t said aloud. And Owyn held him. Promised him he was his. And finally everything felt steady.
[Three days later]
Saturday night, a small restaurant near campus. Warm lights wooden tables the smell of grilled meat and garlic hanging in the air.
Noah arrived first with Owyn. His hand stayed firmly on Owyn’s lower back. Grounded.
Aaron walked in.
Relaxed.
Confident.
Red hoodie instead of a jersey.
He smiled.
“This feels dramatic” Aaron said lightly. “Are we breaking up or forming a band?”
Owyn huffed a laugh. Noah didn’t.
“We just wanted to talk” Owyn said calmly.
Aaron nodded. “Yeah I figured.” He looked at Noah. Steady. No teasing. No challenge.
“…You hate me.”
“I don’t hate you” Noah said flatly.
Aaron raised a brow.
“…I just don’t like you very much” Noah corrected.
Owyn nudged Noah’s knee under the table.
Aaron laughed softly. “Fair.”
The waiter came. Small talk hovered awkwardly before Aaron leaned back.
“Okay. I’ll go first” he said. “Yes. I flirt. A lot. It’s kind of a personality flaw.”
“That’s not something to be proud of” Noah muttered.
“I’m not proud. I’m self aware” Aaron shot him a small grin then looked at Owyn. “And yes. I was interested.”
Noah’s fingers tightened around his glass.
Aaron didn’t look away. “You’re easy to like. You’re kind. You show up. You listen. And you look at people like they matter. That’s attractive.”
Owyn blinked.
“But!” Aaron continued glancing at Noah. “I’m not stupid. I saw the way you two look at each other. That’s not casual.”
“I pushed” Aaron admitted. “Because he said he didn’t have a boyfriend. I thought maybe you were too scared to claim him.”
“That wasn’t your place” Noah said quietly.
“You’re right. It wasn’t.”
“I’m not a villain” Aaron said. “I flirt. I test waters. If someone’s taken and happy I back off. That’s it. The second you told me you two were official I stopped.”
“I did really like you” Aaron added. “Not just to mess with him. I wouldn’t waste my time like that. But I respect it. You two make sense. Annoyingly.”
Noah exhaled. “I didn’t like how you touched him” he admitted.
Aaron nodded. “Yeah. That was intentional. Not to steal him. To force you to decide.”
“Manipulative” Owyn said.
“Maybe” Aaron shrugged. “But it worked.”
Noah looked at Owyn. Saw his faint smile. It had worked.
Aaron leaned forward. “I never would’ve crossed a real line. I just… pursue what’s available.”
Owyn took Noah’s hand under the table. “I’m not available.”
“Yeah. I can see that” Aaron paused. “You could relax. He chose you.”
Noah squeezed Owyn’s hand. “I know.”
Aaron smirked. “If you ever screw it up I’m still around.”
Noah narrowed his eyes.
Aaron laughed. “Relax. I’m kidding. Mostly.”
Owyn rolled his eyes. “You’re impossible.”
“And you’re whipped” Aaron shot back.
Noah didn’t deny it. “I am.”
Owyn turned. “Really?”
Noah met his gaze. “I am. I am yours.”
Aaron gagged jokingly and left.
Noah and Owyn just sat. Relief. Warmth. Safety. Finally.
Noah leaned forward kissed him gently. Not rushed. Not hidden. When they pulled back foreheads together.
“Thank you” Noah murmured.
“For what?”
“For choosing me even when I was an idiot.”
Owyn smiled. “You’re still an idiot.”
“Yeah” Noah grinned. “But I’m your idiot.”
And this time there was no almost about it.