AUTHOR'S POV

William's mansion,
11:20 am

The silence was suspicious as Edwin and Reed took Xaden with them to their penthouse in a car. Hazel was also with them but as soon as they approached their penthouse they told Hazel to make coffee for them and followed Xaden to his room.

Entering inside Xaden removed his shoes as the wound on his heel was still fresh.

He sensed the frozen posten of his brothers behind and the door got closed. He side-eyed them to see Reed folding his sleeves up while Edwin cracked his neck bone.

Xaden turned in the opposite direction and got ready to run to the bathroom to escape them but he had to pass the whole room for it with his wounded heel.

Yet he dared to run but Edwin effortlessly pulled him back by his collar and slammed him against the wall. " Make sure Hazel won't hear your voice." Edwin threatened.

Reed also blocked his way and they both eliminated distance causing Xaden to push himself onto the wall.

Edwin fisted his palm and grabbed its wrist with the other palm." Are you going first or should I?" Edwin asked Reed movie his grabbed wrist in a circular motion.

" What about attaching simultaneously?" Reed said and they both started to laugh.

Xaden looked at them both and held his breath knowing what was coming.

Within a second he got kicked on his stomach by Reed's knee while a punch across his face by Edwin at the same time.

Xaden groaned loudly sliding down from the wall and holding his stomach.

"F*cker have no an inch of unbeaten flash." Edwin kicked Xaden on his hip. " Come on get up. Fight us." Edwin added gesturing him to stand up.

" I'm sorry." He said resting his head on the wall and looking up at his brothers.

" I don't want to be found huh?" Edwin repeated what Xaden wrote on the latter that day.

" Thanks for the slap, huh?" Reed pulled him up by his collar and made him face him again. " Let me make you thank me thousands of more times. Count with me."

" Reed...come on-" Xaden whined.

" Do you have any idea what your absence caused? Did you think disappearing overnight will solve everything?"

Xaden sighed tilting his head and listening to his brother talking nonstop angrily yet having a concern in his voice. Anyone could tell by looking at his heavily moving chest that he was scared to lose him.

" Reed," Xaden said calmly and opened his arms.

Reed stopped complaining and relaxed his shoulders. He sighed looking at Xaden's arms before stepping forward and hugging him tightly.

" Forgive me." Xaden apologized hugging him back.

Reed nodded. " I'm sorry as well. I shouldn't have raised my hand that night." He ruffled Xaden's hair.

" You are forgiven long ago," Xaden replied getting petted on his back by Reed before they pulled back.

" Okay now kiss." Edwin interrupted.

" Oh shut up." Hazel walked in with four mugs of coffee. " There's always you ruining the moment." She added placing the tray at a side.

" Group hug?" She asked opening her arms. Edwin pulled her between them and she got crashed between three of them yet giggled.

They sat together and started drinking coffee that's when Edwin eyed Xaden's tattoos." That is some great ink man where did you get them from?" He asked touching his armband tattoo.

" France," Xaden replied taking a sip.

" You been there? Woah!" Edwin gawked as if he hasn't traveled half of the world by now.

" I've been to hell too." Xaden began.

" What were you doing there without me?" Edwin chuckled.

" Doing concerts for devils," Xaden replied taking a sip from his coffee.

"That's so random," Hazel mumbled watching two grown-up men talking meaninglessly.

" Just like this coffee. " Edwin put the emptied mug back making faces.

Before they start to brag over nothing Reed interrupted. " Okay guys, we gotta leave now." He stood up having lots of things to take care of in EXR. " Take care and don't miss the appointment." He said facing Xaden getting his raised hand in response before turning his gaze at Hazel. "Thanks for the coffee it was amazing." He added leaving along with Edwin.

Hazel went to the kitchen leaving Xaden to rest but when she got back to his room he was inside the bathroom. The door was open and she was able to hear him talking. As she went closer she saw him arguing with a product's cap as it wasn't opening with one hand.

She laughed catching his attention.

"Let me do it." She stepped into the bathroom and took the tube from him. It was a shaving cream.

She grabbed his arm and made him stand against the sink. " Stand here." She said standing between his legs as he spread them to match her height.

She gently applied the cream to his face and took a razor in her hand.

She brought her face closer to his and tilted her head carefully shaving his beard.

The edge of that tool's blade was moving smoothly across his face while his eyes were on Hazel's features.

He stood there like a mannequin as her body was keep on brushing over his chest without her realising what it was causing.

She tiptoed and ran her thumb on his lips to clean the foam from it but he was too sensitive for her touches.

She help him wash his face and started to wipe his face using a towel. " It's done." She smiled being proud of her work.

He blipped staring at her lips.

Hazel's smile faded as he moved his hand up, brushing it from her wrist to her arm. She noticed his lips parting but he suddenly pushed her outside the bathroom and locked its door.

" I need to pee I'm sorry." He lied placing his hand on his chest as his heart was out of control.

Hazel stood outside dumbfounded while Xaden had to take a cold shower because of her.

She waited for him only for him to come out in a bathrobe with his now ruined heel bandage.

" What did you do?" Hazel gasped helping him sit on the edge of the bed.

" I turned on the shower and forgot about it," Xaden replied hissing in pain.

" Oh my god, it started to bleed again." Hazel panicked and rushed to his closet coming back with a mismatched pair of clothes.

She helped him wear them and took him to the hospital. He didn't argue even though he had planned to miss the evening appointment but the pain was unbearable.

Reaching there she sat beside him holding his hand as a nurse started cleaning his wounds.

" Damn, this shit hurts." He groaned putting his forehead on Hazel's shoulder in an attempt to ensure the pain.

" Who told you to be a hero there? Now bear it quietly." She lectured putting her hand on the back of his head.

Xaden adjusted his face and ended up hiding it in the crook of Hazel's neck.

He hissed clenching the bedsheet and closing his eyes tightly shut as the pain made his eyes turn teary.

It took the nurses around twenty minutes to dress his wounds and he kept his face buried. Her scent was the only thing distracting him at the moment and her embrace was somewhat calming his heart.

" You are done, Sir." One of the nurses spoke while each of them were adoring his childish behavior.

No wonder they were drooling over him because of his celebrity looks, the piercings, the tattoos, and the messy wolf hair of his was not matching his baby face there.

" Button up," Hazel said as some of his top buttons were undone making him look sexier, one of the reasons why the nurses were drooling over him.

Xaden sensed her sulking so he leaned to her ear with a slight smirk." Thousands of women eye me within a few hours of the show. This is nothing new for me." He whispered in her ear before moving back gesturing Hazel to look at the nurses who bumped into each other as he smiled at them.

Xaden chuckled enjoying his impact but suddenly got pulled by Hazel who grabbed him by his shirt. " Calm down, my boy. This ain't a suitable place for a concert nor your foot gonna co-operate you." She smiled sarcastically and buttoned up his shirt.

" Still, I can sing for them-"

" You need to rest." Hazel ignored his words and pushed him so he could only face the ceiling. She blocked his view as well by sitting on a tool in front of him.

The Tom and Jerry talk was neverending while waiting for the doctor.

Hazel took a pen from aside and wrote a short note on his plaster and did her signature under it.

Xaden was getting de ja vo as Hazel clicked a selfie with him.

" I recreated our picture." She said showing him the selfie.

" You remember?" Xaden asked.

" Yup, I recently saw it," Hazel replied scrolling through her mobile.

"Oh." He nodded but the next moment something hit him like a truck that made him sit straight again. " You found that photograph in my drawer?" He asked hoping he was wrong.

Hazel faced him and nodded.

Embarrassed, Xaden averted his gaze.
"Please don't ask anything..."
"Please don't ask anything..."
He spoke in his mind but she did.

" Why did you collect them?" She inquired but he was too red to respond or even look at her face. " My portraits, ponytails, accessories-.
" She was counting things but suddenly paused and her head snapped up at him again. " Don't tell me you still have my-" Her eyes widened at the thought. " But it wasn't in that draw." She added.

Knowing what she was referring to he nodded just for once that too in slow motion. " I took that with me when I left." He replied not holding eye contact with her.

" WHAT?" She didn't believe her ears.

" That was for my emotional support you know..." He said above a whisper not even being able to complete his sentence.

"A lingerie." She finally laughed out loud." Emotional support lingerie, Bravo." She clapped herself laughing hard.

" I was in a hurry, okay? I took whatever I could." He defended himself as well as cursed because he wanted to disappear from her sight.

"This is the lamest sh*t." She managed to speak between her non-ending laughter. "I'm imagining you wiping tears with my lingerie." She added.

" I didn't cry there." He lied rolling his eyes.

" You are out of the world." She shook her head wanting to pull his cheeks hard but his buries were bagged to not get touched.

" When did you find that out?" Xaden asked which made her smile vanish.

" After you left." She replied. " Why didn't you talk to me about it?" She asked.

" You liked that Ian so-"

" I know I never looked at you in that way but you had many chances to share it with me." She said relaxing her shoulders.

" To be honest, I was scared. I knew you'd not pick me. You would have never." He mumbled the last words.

" You answered to yourself and gave up." Hazel sighed.

" I'm not someone who gives up easily. I tried for months to be your type, got tips from Edwin, and changed myself so much that I couldn't recognise myself at a point. But I was happy until you suddenly announced your engagement. I was in delusion thinking giving space will help but everything turned upside down overnight. I threw myself into office work away from my interest, my passion. I did every shit yet I never stood a chance against him, did I?" He questioned.

" Actually you did once," Hazel muttered dropping Xaden's jaw. " The night before my engagement. I really wished to be the girl you were talking about when you came home drunk. I didn't know it was me." She revealed.

"Still you got engaged?" Xaden asked.

"To be honest I was having a crisis at the last moment." She pouted.

" What do you mean?" Xaden gawked.

"I kept on searching for you throughout the ceremony." She said watching him drop his gaze.

"I was crying in my room." He muttered.

" You like me that much?" Hazel asked.

Xaden nodded slowly.

" Since when?" She asked.

" Since the day you were born. I remember I was three. I teazed everyone to let me hold you and succeeded. Reed and Edwin also wanted to carry you but I announced you as mine. I always was gatekeeping you but failed to gatekeep your heart. It was never mine." He told her sadly. "I saw you happy without me, so I left you."

" Xaden, I need time. I'm still not over what happened. Her eyes shimmered with tears as she spoke about Ian. " I don't want to commit myself to anyone for now. I can't use you to forget him." She added.

" Unlove everyone before you love me because when I want something even if it's attention I want all of it. I can wait as long as you want me to. I'm good at it. But I don't like sharing what's mine... especially you."

Hazel nodded with teary eyes. " Wait for me...I need you to wait for me."

• If I ever become an option, don't pick me.

Chapter Published On: 18 June 2023.

Thank you so much for waiting you'll get a reward for it.

I saw some readers (not mine) commenting so rudely just because an author didn't publish a chapter she promised their readers that she'll on a certain date. Like wtf, how could they force on her, she could be busy, we all have a life outside social media, so be mature and cooperative. She's a big author on almost every platform, she has lots of followers she doesn't need those shitty ones. I felt so bad for her. I hope non of you will ever be harsh on me. I'm sensitive but have back of my sisters who can roast the shit out of anyone.

Note: There will be no update on next Sunday.

A little spoiler: The next chapter is spicy and will be published anytime 🤫🤫

90k reads on Double Trouble 🥳💃🏻 To be honest when I started writing for the first time, I thought not even nine people gonna read my books🤭🤭

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