Page 4 of Noelle's Secret Admirer

“Hey man,” I said as I approached.

“He’s already in the back of my truck.”

“You’re fast. Time for a drink?”

“A quick one. I tied him up in case he comes too,” he said with a wink. “I always hated that guy.”

We went back to the bar and took a seat. “He fucked with Noelle.”

“Have you talked to her?”

“No.”

“Max–”

“Please don’t start with me tonight,” I said as I ran my hand over my face, trying to clear the aggravation from my expression. I trusted Rocco, so he was the only person in the world who knew how I felt about Noelle.

“I’m not starting with you, I just think… hell, you know what I think. You need to talk to her.”

“It’s not the right time. She’s upset about what happened.”

“I heard they were dating. No thanks to you.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I see you every day and have to deal with your erratic behavior about her since childhood, and half the time I don’t even know what’s caused it.”

He was right. It was hard enough knowing he thought I had been fucking up for years by not telling her how I feel. The idea of updating him every time my jealousy sparked at a new level was just too much. He had no idea about the letters I had been leaving her, and really no clue how much of a fucking stalker I had become, but he knew enough to have the opinion that I’m a fuckup by not reaching out to her and explaining myself.

“You’re right. I’m an ass. I’m sorry.”

“You say that now,” he said with a laugh, “But I have a feeling you are only apologizing because I came to clean up your mess… again.”

I laughed, “You’re probably right. I can’t be seen bringing him home and you know that. Besides, you are scarier than I am.”

“I try.”

We didn’t stay any longer than needed. I climbed on to the back of my bike and watched him pull away with Andrew tied up in the back of his pickup. This was pretty much a flawless process for us by now. I’d lose my temper over someone hurting Noelle. He’d come clean up. I had never taken it too far, but I’m not going to lie. Tonight, I wanted to kill that motherfucker. Instead, I stop when they are unconscious and then Rocco comes and gets them. I never really asked what happens after that, but whatever he says to them keeps them quiet. It’s the only way I’ve been able to stay in Whitewood as long as I have and not get myself charged with assault by any of these dicks. The closest I came to having an issue was when Noelle was in college. She had an art professor that kept hitting on her. My sweet girl didn’t even recognize the signs back then. It took some physical reminders that he was way too old for herandher teacher for him to back off. He sent some threats to the shop, and Rocco intervened. That was when I broke down and told him what had been going on. Since then, he’s been the closest thing I have to a best friend.

I was standing in front of Noelle’s bedroom window, watching her sleep, when my phone buzzed in my pocket. Pulling it out, I looked down to find it was my sister Eve.

Eve: Hey, just a heads up Noelle is going through another break up and she’s pretty beat up about it. Will you be at Mom and Dad’s in the morning?

Maxwell: Yeah, I’ll be there. Thanks for the heads up.

Even though my sister was probably the closest person in my life, she didn’t know how deeply I cared for Noelle. We didn’t share that kind of relationship, and the idea of exposing my vulnerability to one of my family members scared the hell out of me. I couldn’t risk certain people knowing my secrets.

Eve: Okay. Goodnight, Max.

I put my phone away, glancing back through the window, taking in Noelle’s sleeping form. Her room was dimly lit, casting soft shadows over her features. I wished I could climb into bed with her, hold her close and comfort her.

Just as I was about to turn away, Noelle stirred, sleepily reaching for something on her bedside table. I held my breath, my heart pounding in my chest. She held the note I’d left for her, the one that carried my heart in its words. She squinted at it in the dim light and then sighed.

I watched as a tear slipped down her cheek, breaking me into a thousand pieces. I wanted to wipe it away, to make her forget the pain she was feeling, but all I could do was stand outside her window and silently promise her I would make it better.

As she finally drifted off to sleep, clutching the note to her chest, I felt a sense of hope. Even though she didn’t know it was me, she held onto the words I’d written, finding some solace in them. It gave me the courage to keep doing what I was doing, to keep protecting her from the shadows, waiting for the right moment to step into the light.

My phone buzzed again, pulling me away from my thoughts. It was Rocco.