Love's Redemption (Chris and Maddie)
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Wayne's grip on my hand loosened, his expression softening as the tension drained from his face.

"Do you think even less of me now? His voice was low, almost like he'd given up.

"It's not about looking down on you, Wayne," I said, locking eyes with him. "Back then, I chose Jace because he made my heart race, not because you weren't good enough. But now... after everything? I'm just disappointed."

"Do you even know why I did all this?" he asked quietly.

I laughed bitterly. "You were so clear-headed when you left four years ago. How did you end up like this, Wayne? Why are you losing yourself now?" Back then, when I got together with Jace, whatever path there was with Wayne had closed. Even after Jace and I broke up, Wayne and I were never going to be more than 'siblings."

"You loved Jace for ten expected.

1. s. I've loved you just as long." he confessed, and his words hit harder than I

But sympathy wasn't what I felt-it was just a reminder of old wounds.

Loving someone in silence? I understood that. But I still had to be real with him, no matter how much it hurt.

"I loved Jace because I thought there was a future with him. But you? You knew it was hopeless and kept going anyway. That's not love, Wayne-It's foolishness. You were setting yourself up for pain."

I knew it stung, but it was the truth.

And now, Wayne had tried to sabotage Jace and kept the truth hidden-for his own reasons. That's what hurt the most.

"Foolishness," he muttered, repeating the word with a bitter laugh. "Yeah, that sounds about right."

His tone was mocking, but there was a clear sting behind it-like he was calling me foolish for loving Jace for so long.

There wasn't anything left to say. But I gave him one last reminder. "You and Jace can fight all you want, but don't ever use me as leverage again." Hayden had been waiting for me outside. The second he saw me, he walked over and grabbed my hand, not asking a single question. He just led me away.

Earlier, Hayden had played the recording that exposed Tanya and Brad's scheme. He had quietly gotten it for me after I'd voiced my suspicions about Wayne's behavior and Tanya's motives. Hayden had done the rest, investigating behind the scenes and showing up today with the proof.

He never made a big deal about it, but he always handled the stuff that made my life easier.

"Where's Yuna?" I asked after a while, realizing we hadn't found her yet.

"She's somewhere quieter," Hayden said, his voice steady and reassuring.

That made sense. Yuna was still recovering, and a crowded place wasn't ideal. I trusted Hayden's

judgment.

"How much further?" I asked, feeling exhaustion creeping in.

"Tired already?" Hayden teased, catching on instantly.

I didn't hide it. "Yeah."

"Want me to carry you?" he offered with a playful grin.

laughed. “Carry me? Don't you think I got enough attention already?"

“So what? Some people would love that kind of attention," Hayden teased back.

His joking made me smile. I pointed to a tandem bike parked nearby. "How about we ride that instead?" "Whatever you want," he said, leading me over to it.

We scanned the code and hopped on. At first, it was peaceful, but after a few minutes, I noticed more people riding alongside us, like we'd accidentally started a biking parade.

"What's going on? Are they following us? Do you think it's because of earlier?" I asked, starting to get a little paranoid. Hayden just smiled, totally chill. "You scared?"

"A little," I admitted, glancing around.

“Don't be. I'm right here," he said, giving me that familiar, protective look.

looked at the other riders more closely and realized they weren't acting weird. They were just... biking. two big deal. started to relax. Then a little boy pointed at us and asked, "Mommy, why do those bikes have words on The back? 1