Chapter 309
Hearing the faint sigh, Suzy glanced back in his direction.
Liam didn’t want to look at her anymore. He wanted to find an excuse to leave the room and head back upstairs. He was in no mood to watch them play cards, let alone join. A heavy tightness in his chest made it difficult to breathe.
Still, before walking away, he couldn’t resist casting one last glance at her.
This time, his eyes collided with hers once more.
Suzy waved him over, gesturing for him to sit beside her.
A flash of inner conflict crossed Liam’s eyes. After a few seconds of hesitation, he finally walked over and took a seat on the sofa next to her.
Both Derek and Thomas noticed his arrival. Their brows furrowed slightly, but neither said a word. After all, they had seen that Suzy was the one who invited him over. Suppressing the bitterness in their hearts, they forced their attention back to the card table, though their ears remained sharply tuned to the couch.
Now seated next to her, Liam felt Suzy’s eyes on him, a gentle warmth in her smile.
"Not going to play with them?" she asked.
Liam shook his head. "I don’t know how."
Silence settled between them once more. Sensing his coolness, Suzy found herself at a loss for words.
Surprisingly, it was Liam who broke the silence. He turned to look at her, his gaze landing on her injured shoulder. "How are you feeling?" he asked softly.
"You mean my injury?" Suzy replied. "Much better. You don’t need to worry so much."
Liam let out a quiet sigh of relief. He actually had so much he wanted to say to her, but the words seemed to stick in his throat, leaving him aching. After another moment of silence, he managed to force out, "That’s good."
After those two words, he fell silent again. He sat on the sofa with his hands resting on his knees, his fingers curling slightly as his gaze fixed onto the empty glass on the coffee table. It was Suzy’s glass, and it had long been empty.
"Would you like some water?" Liam asked eagerly, as if grasping at a lifeline for conversation.
Suzy shook her head. "No, thank you."
"...Oh," he murmured quietly.
Bursts of laughter continued to drift over from the card table. Lucas had just won a hand and was triumphantly slapping the floor, while Elijah protested loudly, demanding a reshuffle.
Thomas expressionlessly threw down a powerful pair of cards, silencing the entire table. Leonard played his cards at a leisurely pace, quietly winning several rounds without making a sound.
Since being dragged into the game, Derek hadn’t left. Despite claiming he would "only play two rounds," he was holding onto his cards tighter than anyone.
Leaning against the sofa and wrapped in her blanket, Suzy turned her head to study Liam. His profile looked serene in the candlelight, the play of light and shadow outlining features that were breathtakingly beautiful.
But she also noticed that his quietness wasn’t born of relaxation; he was wound tight. His lips were pressed into a thin line, and a very faint crease marred the space between his brows, barely visible if one wasn’t looking closely.
His fingers tapped twice against his knee, stopped, and then tapped twice more.
He was anxious. She could feel it.
Was it being around her that made him anxious? Was she putting pressure on him?
As the thought surfaced, a wave of irritation washed over Suzy as well. This was bad—very bad. If Liam felt uneasy just being near her, how was she supposed to raise his affection levels and win him over?
"Liam," she called out.
Liam turned his head to meet her gaze. His expression remained unchanged, but his eyes shifted, looking as though he had suddenly been recalled from a great distance.
"Yeah," he responded quietly.
Suzy studied him for a couple of seconds before softening into a smile. "Is something on your mind?" she probed gently.
Liam’s eyelashes fluttered down before he looked back up. "...No," he said.
Suzy didn’t call him out, though she knew he was lying.
"Is Noah asleep?" she shifted topics.
"Yes, he is," Liam replied, his voice softening at the mention of his brother. "He fell asleep the moment his head hit the pillow. He was exhausted today."
"You must be tired too," Suzy noted. "Tossing and turning all day with the move, doing this and that... you definitely exerted yourself."
"It was fine," he said, pausing before adding, "Everyone helped a lot."
Suzy nodded. Another stretch of silence followed.
Suddenly, someone called out "Suzy!" from the card table. It was Derek. Holding his cards, he looked back at her, his eyes shining with a tentative hope.
Suzy waved her hand, signaling for him to keep playing. Derek hesitated for a moment before turning back to the game, though his focus was clearly broken.
Liam took in the entire exchange. Watching that simple interaction—the casual wave of her hand and Derek’s lingering look—that inexplicable tightness tightened its grip on his heart. It wasn’t quite jealousy, nor was it pure sourness; it was something deeper and more suffocating. It felt as if a clump of wet cotton had been stuffed into his chest—not painful, but leaving him starved for air.
He stood up. "I’m going to check on Noah," he said.
Suzy looked up at him. Liam didn’t meet her eyes; his gaze was already fixed on the bedroom, his feet already moving.
"Wait," Suzy’s voice called from behind him.
Liam’s steps paused, but he didn’t turn around. Before she could speak again, he hurried away, his pace slightly faster than usual, as if fleeing from something.
He pushed open the bedroom door, slipped inside, and gently closed it behind him, shutting out the laughter and the rustle of cards from the living room.
A single candle burned on the nightstand, casting a weak glow. Noah lay sprawled on the bed, fast asleep, his blanket half-kicked off with one leg exposed.
Liam walked over, pulled the blanket back over him, and sat down on the edge of the mattress. In the dimness, his shoulders finally slumped. He stared at the flickering candle flame, lost in thought for a long time.
His mind was completely blank, and he couldn’t even tell what he was thinking. After an unknown measure of time, he let out a sigh so quiet it was practically imperceptible.
Right then, the door opened.
It wasn’t a draft. Someone had come in.
The hinges gave a soft creak, followed by the faint sound of footsteps stepping lightly across the floorboards.
Liam froze instantly, his bowed head snapping up. He didn’t turn around, sitting rigid on the spot.
Suzy stood in the doorway. She was still draped in the blanket, her hair slightly messy, a faint flush lingering on her cheeks. Her eyes scanned the darkness, finding him immediately.
She had hesitated for a long time outside before ultimately deciding to come in. Opportunities like this were rare, and she wanted to push their relationship progression forward. In times like this, she had to be proactive.
"Liam," Suzy called out softly.
Liam was stunned. He remained frozen, completely motionless. Only after a long pause did he turn his head to look at her.
The light was dim, rendering her expression unreadable. Yet, her mere presence was enough to send his pulse racing out of control. His breathing quickened automatically, his heart hammering against his ribs in a rhythm he couldn’t master.
He hadn’t expected her to come at all. He had assumed she would stay in the living room, content to watch the others play.
But she had come looking for him.
Liam stared at her, completely at a loss.
Suzy took a step forward and quietly closed the door behind her. Her peripheral vision caught Noah on the bed; the little guy was sound asleep. As long as they didn’t make too much noise, they wouldn’t disturb him.
With a soft click, the door latched shut.
To Liam, it felt as though his heart stopped at that exact moment.
"Why... why did you come in?" he asked, his voice thick and strained.
Suzy didn’t answer right away. She approached him at a measured pace, quickly reaching the bedside. Standing right beside him, she looked down at his silhouette.
"Are you in a bad mood?" she asked gently.
Liam tilted his face upward. Those eyes, which usually held a melancholic air, were now shimmering with a liquid light, captivating and intense. He looked as though he were waiting for something, words trembling on the edge of his lips but left unsaid.
"No... I’m fine," he murmured, lowering his gaze to hide the emotions swirling in his eyes.
"Should I not have come to find you?" Suzy said softly. "You looked upset, and I was worried."
Her words fell naturally and with absolute sincerity. Yet to Liam’s ears, those light words carried an immense weight, striking his heart with sudden force.
"I... it’s not that..."
He scrambled to explain himself but didn’t know where to begin. He knew that whatever he said aloud would sound incredibly strange.
Suzy glanced around the dim space before finally sitting down on the edge of the bed beside him. The blanket slipped halfway off her shoulder, but she didn’t bother to pull it up, letting it drape loosely.
Tilting her head slightly, she whispered, "Are you avoiding me?"
Liam’s fingers curled tight against his knees. "No," he denied quickly.
"I can feel it," Suzy said, a note of helplessness in her voice. "Did I do something to upset you?"
Her gentle interrogation made Liam clench his fists. He lifted his eyes to look at her, the emotions churning within them incredibly complex.
"No... you’ve misunderstood... you didn’t do anything wrong," he said automatically.
It was his own fault.
He simply didn’t know how to face her, nor did he know how to deal with the feelings locking up his chest. That was the only reason he was running.