Crossed Lines by Felicity at Inkitt

Chapter 1

Morning🌞

The first thing I felt was warmth.

Sunlight slipped through the thin curtains and landed straight on my face, forcing my eyes to squint against the golden glow. My body was heavy with sleep, and my mind clung to the fading dream I couldn’t remember.

Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.

I groaned, rolling onto my side. My phone vibrated furiously, sending three consecutive notifications. The light from the screen stabbed my sleepy eyes,

and I had to blink a few times to adjust. With a lazy hand, I dragged it closer.

Three messages.

I didn’t even need to open them to know who they were from.

Levi.

My thumb hovered over the screen for a moment, then I sighed and dropped the phone onto the bed. I wasn’t in the mood. Not this early.

The floor was cold against my feet as I dragged myself out of bed, my hair messy and sticking to one side of my face. From the kitchen, Mom’s voice pierced the peaceful morning.

"Yena! Tea!"

I winced. Mom’s morning voice could shake walls.

By the time I reached the kitchen, the smell of fresh tea leaves and milk filled the air. Mom stood with her arms crossed, staring me down like I had committed a crime.

“Morning,” I mumbled, reaching for the cup.

She didn’t miss a beat.

"Can’t you wake up on my first call? I’m not going to make tea again and again! Everyone’s sleeping and I am the servant here, right? My duty to serve you all, Your Highness!"

Her words were sharp, but I had heard the same speech every day of my life. I sipped my tea slowly, pretending her sarcasm didn’t exist.

I wasn’t ready for a fight this early.

The warm liquid eased down my throat, chasing away the last bit of sleep. I carried my cup to the sink, ready to wash it, but Mom’s sudden yell made me flinch.

"Leave it! Go to work!"

My heart jumped into my throat.

I muttered a quick “Okay” and retreated to my room.

Clothes flew from my closet as I grabbed whatever was clean enough for work. A quick shower later, I stood in front of the mirror, staring at my own reflection.

My hair dripped water onto my shoulders, my shirt stuck to my skin slightly, and my face… well, I looked more awake now, but there was something restless in my eyes.

Buzz.

Again. My phone screen lit up with Levi’s name.

"Ah, this boy…" I huffed, rolling my eyes and hitting mute.

I wasn’t ready for him either.

---

The morning air hit my face as I stepped outside. Cool and fresh, carrying the smell of damp earth. That’s when I saw him.

Levi’s car.

Parked right in front of my house, sleek and shiny in the morning light.

He was leaning on the window, staring at me. His eyes locked on mine, sharp and unreadable.

"Why aren’t you picking up my calls? I’ve been calling since morning," he said the moment I came close, his tone almost accusing.

I kept my face blank and avoided his gaze.

"Come on. What are you waiting for?" he pressed.

Before I could answer, Mom came bustling out of the door with a tiffin in her hand.

"Take this, Yena! Why are you standing here? Your brother is calling you—go!"

I nodded, took the tiffin, and finally slid into Levi’s car. The seatbelt clicked into place. Through the rearview mirror

, I caught a glimpse of Mom waving, and I gave a small nod back.

The car pulled away from the house, the hum of the engine filling the silence between us.

---

For a while, neither of us spoke. Only the low music from the radio and the occasional honk from passing vehicles filled the space. I watched the world outside the window blur into moving colors.

"Yena… why are you scared of me, hm?" Levi’s voice broke the quiet.

I turned my head, disbelief in my eyes.

"I’m not scared of you, okay… bro."

His face twisted, irritated.

"Don’t call me bro, Yena."

"Then what should I call you? You’re my brother," I shot back.

"No, I’m not. Why can’t you just… understand me? Just trust me once, Yena." His voice carried a strange mix of frustration and pleading.

I rolled my eyes and looked back out the window, watching a group of school kids race each other on bicycles.

"Do you have anyone special in your life?" he asked suddenly.

My throat went dry. Silence hung in the car.

"But… we’re not possible, Levi. It’s not possible. You’re like my brother in front of the whole family. My father trusts you. You can’t just… say you love me," I whispered.

"Love is love. It has no boundaries. Who cares about the situation?" he countered, his knuckles white against the steering wheel.

"What will my parents think? They’ll never accept this. Forget it, Levi. Just… forget this," I said, voice firmer this time.

He didn’t look at me, but his jaw tightened.

"Yena… can’t you see how much I love you? Just say it once. Just once… that you love me too," he said softly, his eyes finally meeting mine, filled with desperate hope.

The car slowed to a stop near my workplace. My hand shook slightly as I unfastened the seatbelt.

I turned to him, met his gaze for one last moment.

"Levi… I don’t love you. Why can’t you understand?"

The words felt heavy in my mouth. I opened the door and stepped out without looking back.

Through the car window, I could feel his anger, his sadness,

his frustration. It was always the same storm with him. But I ignored it all and walked into the building, straight into my classroom.

A dozen young faces looked up at me, waiting for guidance toward their dream jobs. I forced a professional smile and greeted them, pushing the mess of my personal life into the farthest corner of my mind.

After classes..

The sun was beginning to lower when my classes ended, painting the streets in a soft golden haze. I stepped out of the building with my bag slung over my shoulder, my heart already restless.

He would come.

He always came.

I hated this feeling—the heaviness in my chest, the sharpness of the air when I waited for him. With Levi, tension was my shadow.

It hadn’t always been this way.

I remembered the first time I met him, at a family function. He was my dad’s friend, polite and warm, smiling as he greeted everyone. He slid into our lives so effortlessly, as if he had always belonged there. Slowly, he became family, another “brother” in the house.

Back then, I had talked to him freely, without suspicion. I thought he could be a friend, someone to chat with casually. And he agreed.

Then… one day, he confessed.

The words that came out of his mouth froze me in place. He didn’t want to be a friend. He didn’t want to be a brother. He wanted me.

Since that day, every meeting with him felt like walking through a storm. I rejected him every time. Impossible—that’s what I told him. But he never stopped.

A black car slid into view. Levi.

I took a deep breath, walked toward it, and slipped inside. The moment I shut the door, the silence hit me. He didn’t speak. He didn’t even look at me. His face was still painted with that dull, faded sadness that had followed him since morning.

The engine hummed to life, and we started moving.

The city blurred past us.

Then, halfway down a deserted road, he slowed to a stop. My stomach tightened as I scanned the empty street. The trees cast long, lonely shadows. No one else was around.

"Yena…"

His voice was low, almost breaking.

"Today, you have to tell me. Why don’t you like me? Is it because I’m not handsome? Because I have no fixed career? Am I not enough for you?"

His words hit me like stones—raw and hurting.

I shifted in my seat, uneasy.

"Levi… let’s go home. We can talk there, I swear. Please… just drive fast," I said, my voice anxious, my hands twisting in my lap.

The truth was, I didn’t trust boys. I didn’t trust their promises, their pretty words. My whole life, my parents had drilled that fear into me.

Levi’s face crumpled with a sadness that twisted my heart.

"Yena… I care for you. If you come into my life, I’ll show you how much I can love you. No one will ever love you like I do."

A single tear escaped from his eye. My throat tightened as I watched it fall.

I hesitated, then spoke the truth I’d carried quietly in my heart.

*"Levi… you know I’m not the kind of girl you like. I can’t live freely like other girls. I’m the girl who won’t even drink water if my parents say no.

In my family, love doesn’t exist. We don’t talk about it. No one calls me in the morning with ‘sweetheart, breakfast is ready.’

No one wishes birthdays. No one celebrates festivals.

We are a small, struggling family trying to survive in a society that doesn’t care about people like us.

Yes… as a child, I used to dream. I used to fantasize about love. But now… I don’t even know if boys truly love, or if it’s just lust.

I’m scared, Levi. I don’t even know what love is."*

For a moment, the car was quiet. The only sound was the soft whisper of the wind outside.

Then Levi spoke, his tone heavy.

"You really want to know what love is?"

I nodded, hesitant.

He slowly rolled up the sleeve of his right arm.

My heart stopped.

His arm was covered in thin, angry scars, some fresh, some faded. My breath caught in my throat.

"Every time you said you don’t love me," he whispered, his voice trembling, "I added another cut. Each rejection… it hurt so much, Yena. I became this because of love. Because of you."

The sight pierced me with a guilt I couldn’t swallow. My hands shook in my lap.

"Levi… I never wanted to hurt you," I whispered, my voice breaking.

He gave a small, bitter smile.

"The pain is mine. It doesn’t matter. It’s my body… my choice. I just… needed you to see what you mean to me."

I took a deep breath, forcing my voice to steady.

"Levi… promise me something."

His eyes flicked to mine, full of desperate hope.

"Anything."

"Promise me you will never do anything that would shame me in front of my family or society. I can’t handle that."

He nodded quickly, almost frantically.

"I promise. I won’t do anything."

"And never touch me without my permission."