Instinct » Liam Dunbar [Book 3]

26

CHAPTER TWENTY SIX » UNSPOKEN
"I know. I feel the same."

☽

The car ride to Liam's was quiet.

I kept my eyes focused out the window, watching as the night slowly spilled out onto the road.

We'd left Venus and Theo a short while ago, and although Liam had told me he'd drive me home, I insisted I didn't want to go back yet. I was certain Scott was with Malia, and if this was going to be everyone's last night, I hoped it would be the one they deserved together.

There was something satisfying about watching the world go by at this time of the evening. It was almost peaceful with the roads so empty; the hum of the car engine and a faint song on the radio were the only sounds that could really be heard.

"Can I ask you a question?" I jolted slightly at Liam's voice, glancing up and pausing for a moment, rather than turning to look at him. "It's okay if you don't want to talk."

"It's fine," I eventually told him.

"It's just, well, Theo said you didn't want me there because I'd try and stop you," he said, turning to look at me for a moment, before his attention fell back on the road again. "Is that the truth?"

I sighed heavily, fixing my attention back outside again, finding solace as I watched the twilight sky.

"Yes," I finally replied. "And no." Liam turned to look at me again, and this time I met his curious eyes. "Theo called you because my powers were too strong for him to bring me back."

"How come I managed to then?"

I kind of wanted to laugh at his question – not because it was funny, but because I'd asked myself the same thing so hundreds of times before. Why is Liam still the one to always bring me back if he's not supposed to be my anchor anymore?

Instead, I decided to shake my head, a half hearted smile on my face. The question, although purely innocent, should have had an obvious answer. Except, it had even taken me a hell of a long time to figure it out, despite it being right in front of us the whole time.

"I don't think either of us have ever truly realised how strong the connection between us is," I spoke into the silence, noticing Liam stiffen slightly. "I don't know how to describe it really. Something..."

"Unspoken."

I looked over at him, but his eyes were focused ahead, as he gripped tightly onto the steering wheel.

"Unspoken," I repeated, running the word over my tongue. Unspoken. Yeah, that sounded about right.

"So what do we do about it?" Liam asked, glancing over at me again. I opened my mouth to respond before I realised I didn't quite have an answer. "Or do we not do anything about us at all?"

"There's nothing we can do," I eventually settled on. Because there's no us. "It's just there. Maybe it always will be."

Liam nodded slowly, running his tongue over his bottom lip as he seemed to think things through for a moment. "Right."

A slight awkwardness began to intrude on the, once peaceful, silence that we had been sat in previously. Thankfully, the rest of the journey to Liam's wasn't too long, and once he pulled into the driveway, I began to climb out of the car as quickly as I could.

I waited as Liam took a few more moments in the car, until he eventually shut the door behind him, the sound seeming to carry through the air of the silent neighbourhood.