Not a Kid Anymore
Chapter 1 — Not a Kid Anymore
The last time Rhyus saw Chloe, she was sitting cross-legged on the floor, arguing with Jett over a video game controller and calling Rhyus “annoying” every five minutes.
He hadn’t thought about her much after that.
Not really.
So when the front door swung open and he walked into Jett’s house like he had a hundred times before, he wasn’t expecting anything to feel… different.
“Yo, Jett—” Rhyus called out, dropping his keys onto the table.
No answer.
Typical.
He smirked to himself, kicking off his shoes and heading further inside like he owned the place. Which, at this point, he practically did.
“Your mom said I could—”
He stopped mid-sentence.
Because someone else was there.
Standing near the kitchen counter.
And for a second—just a second—his brain didn’t process what he was looking at.
She turned.
And that’s when it hit him.
Chloe.
But not the Chloe he remembered.
His eyes narrowed slightly, like he was trying to make sense of something that didn’t quite add up. “...since when do you look like that?”
The words slipped out before he could stop them.
Chloe didn’t seem surprised.
If anything, she looked like she’d been waiting for that reaction.
She leaned casually against the counter, arms crossing just enough to be confident—not defensive. “Like what?”
Rhyus exhaled slowly, dragging a hand through his hair as his gaze flickered over her again—quicker this time, but not quick enough.
“Different,” he said.
Her lips curved, just a little. “Good different or bad different?”
He let out a quiet laugh under his breath. “Dangerous different.”
That made her smile widen.
And something about that smile made him shift his weight slightly.
Uncomfortable.
Which was new.
Chloe had never made him uncomfortable before.
“You’ve been gone a while,” she said, pushing herself off the counter. “People change.”
“Yeah,” he muttered, watching her take a step closer. “I can see that.”
There was something in the way she moved now.
Slower. Intentional.
Not the awkward little sister tagging along behind Jett anymore.
No—this version of Chloe knew exactly what she was doing.
And that was… a problem.
“Where is Jett?” he asked, mostly to remind himself why he was here in the first place.
“Out,” she said simply.
Of course he was.
Rhyus clicked his tongue. “Unbelievable. He tells me to come over and then disappears.”
“Maybe he knew you’d still show up anyway.”
He glanced at her, one brow lifting. “You saying I’m predictable?”
“I’m saying,” Chloe replied, stepping closer—closer than she ever had before—“you’ve always had a habit of coming back.”
Something about the way she said it made his chest feel… tight.
He leaned back slightly against the edge of the table, folding his arms as he studied her.
Really studied her.
And for the first time, he noticed things he shouldn’t.
The way her eyes held his without hesitation.
The way she didn’t fidget under his attention.
The way she wasn’t trying to seem older—
She just was.
“Careful,” he said lightly, though his voice had dropped half a tone. “You’re starting to sound like you missed me.”
Her expression didn’t falter.
Not even a little.
“Maybe I did.”
That made him pause.
Actually pause.
Because that wasn’t the kind of answer he expected from her.
Not Chloe.
Not Jett’s little sister.
But she didn’t look away.
Didn’t laugh it off.
Didn’t take it back.
And suddenly, the air between them felt… heavier.
“Jett would hate this,” he said after a moment, a smirk tugging at his lips as he tried to steer things back into safer territory.
“Would he?” Chloe tilted her head. “Why?”
“You standing this close to me?” Rhyus let out a quiet chuckle. “Yeah. He’d lose his mind.”
“Then I guess it’s a good thing he’s not here.”
The words landed softer than expected.
But they hit harder.
His eyes dropped—just briefly—to her lips.
And that was his first mistake.
Because when he looked back up, she had noticed.
Of course she had.
“Chloe,” he said, more as a warning than anything else.
But even he wasn’t sure who he was warning.
Her.
Or himself.
She took one more step forward.
Now there was barely any space left between them.
Close enough that he could feel the shift in her breathing.
Close enough that this stopped being harmless.
“You keep saying my name like that,” she murmured, “like I’m still a kid.”
His jaw tightened slightly.
“You are Jett’s little sister.”
It sounded weaker out loud than it did in his head.
She smiled.
Not sweet.
Not innocent.
Something else entirely.
“Am I?”
And just like that—
the line he’d never even thought about crossing…
didn’t feel so clear anymore.
The front door suddenly slammed open.
“YO—RHYUS, YOU HERE OR WHAT?”
Jett’s voice echoed through the house.
Chloe stepped back immediately.
Like nothing had happened.
Like the tension hadn’t just snapped tight between them.
Rhyus straightened, dragging a hand down his face as he exhaled under his breath.
“Yeah,” he called back, his voice steady again. “I’m here.”
Jett walked in a second later, completely oblivious, tossing his bag aside.
“Finally, man—I’ve been—” He stopped, glancing between them. “Why are you both standing like that?”
Chloe didn’t miss a beat.
She shrugged, grabbing her glass from the counter. “Like what?”
Jett frowned. “I don’t know. Weird.”
Rhyus scoffed lightly, shaking his head. “You’re the weird one. Took you long enough.”
Jett rolled his eyes, already moving on.
But Rhyus—
Rhyus glanced at Chloe one more time.
And she was already looking at him.
A small, knowing smile playing on her lips.
Like she had just started something.
And had no intention of stopping.
For the first time since he walked in—
Rhyus wasn’t so sure coming back had been a good idea.
Because Chloe wasn’t a kid anymore.
And he was definitely starting to notice.
Jett didn’t stay suspicious for long.
He never did.
Within seconds, he had flopped onto the couch, already launching into some story about a fight he almost got into earlier, his words fast and loud and completely oblivious to the shift in the room.
Rhyus let himself relax—slightly.
But not completely.
Because Chloe was still there.
And now that he’d noticed…
It was impossible to un-notice.
“—and then this guy thinks he can just cut in front of me,” Jett was saying, gesturing wildly. “Like I won’t say anything?”
Rhyus huffed out a distracted laugh. “You? Not say anything? Yeah, that’s new.”
Jett grinned. “Exactly.”
Chloe moved past them then, heading toward the fridge like everything was normal.
Like she hadn’t just stood inches away from him, looking at him like that.
Rhyus’s eyes followed her without thinking.
Again.
She opened the fridge, bending slightly as she reached for something—
“Hey.”
Jett’s voice snapped him back.
Rhyus blinked. “What?”
“You listening or what?”
“Yeah,” he said quickly, dragging his gaze away. “I’m listening.”
Jett narrowed his eyes. “You don’t look like you’re listening.”
“I am,” Rhyus shot back, leaning forward slightly. “You almost got into a fight. Shocking. Never heard that one before.”
Jett rolled his eyes. “You’re annoying.”
“That’s why you keep me around.”
Chloe returned then, holding a drink, her expression unreadable—but there was something there.
Something subtle.
Like she knew.
She dropped into the chair across from them, crossing one leg over the other casually.
Too casually.
“You guys are loud,” she said.
“You love it,” Jett replied immediately.
She gave him a dry look. “I tolerate it.”
Rhyus smirked faintly. “Big difference.”
Her eyes flicked to his.
And stayed there a second too long.
“You’d be surprised,” she said quietly.
Jett, completely unaware, groaned and stretched. “I’m starving. We should order something.”
“Order for yourself,” Chloe said. “I already ate.”
Rhyus raised a brow. “Since when do you eat without waiting for Jett to steal half your food?”
“Since I learned my lesson,” she replied smoothly.
Jett scoffed. “That was one time.”
“It was every time.”
Rhyus chuckled under his breath, shaking his head.
This—this part was familiar.
Easy.
Normal.
But underneath it…
There was something else now.
Something sharper.
Jett grabbed his phone, already scrolling. “Pizza?”
“I’m good,” Rhyus said.
“Of course you are,” Jett muttered. “You’re always ‘good.’”
Chloe leaned back slightly, her gaze drifting lazily toward Rhyus again. “Maybe he just has better self-control than you.”
Rhyus let out a quiet laugh. “Careful. You’re going to hurt his ego.”
“Too late,” Jett said flatly, still focused on his phone.
But Rhyus caught it—that small shift in Chloe’s expression.
That tiny hint of amusement.
Like she wasn’t really talking about food anymore.
And somehow…
He knew it.
“Self-control’s overrated,” he said, meeting her gaze.
Her brow lifted slightly. “Is it?”
“Yeah,” he replied, voice lower now. “Most of the time, it just means you’re holding back for no reason.”
A pause.
A small one.
But it stretched.
Chloe tilted her head, studying him like she was trying to read between the lines.
“Or,” she said slowly, “maybe it means you know when you shouldn’t cross a line.”
Jett groaned loudly. “Why are you both talking like that? What line? What are you even saying?”
Neither of them answered him.
Because neither of them were talking to him anymore.
Rhyus leaned back again, exhaling quietly through his nose.
“Some lines,” he said, still looking at Chloe, “aren’t as clear as people think.”
Her lips curved—just barely.
“Or maybe,” she replied, “some people just pretend they don’t see them.”
That hit.
More than it should’ve.
Jett finally looked up, frowning between them again. “Okay, seriously—what is happening?”
Chloe stood then, cutting the moment clean in half.
“Nothing,” she said simply.
She grabbed her glass, turning toward the stairs.
“Don’t wait up.”
Jett blinked. “Wait up for what?”
But she was already walking away.
Rhyus watched her go.
Again.
And this time, he didn’t even try to hide it.
“Dude.”
Jett snapped his fingers in front of his face.
Rhyus grabbed his hand, pushing it away. “What?”
“You’re being weird.”
“I’m not being weird.”
“You’re definitely being weird.”
Rhyus shook his head, running a hand through his hair again. “You overthink everything.”
Jett stared at him for a second longer… then shrugged. “Whatever.”
He went back to his phone like it didn’t matter.
Like nothing had changed.
But something had.
Rhyus leaned back, eyes drifting toward the staircase where Chloe had disappeared.
His jaw tightened slightly.
Because the truth was—
He didn’t know when things had shifted.
Didn’t know when Chloe stopped being just Jett’s little sister.
Didn’t know when her voice started sounding different.
When her eyes started lingering.
When standing close to her stopped feeling harmless.
But it had.
And now—
It was messing with his head.
“Pizza or not?” Jett asked absentmindedly.
Rhyus didn’t answer right away.
His mind was somewhere else.
Upstairs.
With her.
“…yeah,” he muttered finally. “Get whatever.”
Jett nodded, already dialing.
But Rhyus barely heard him.
Because for the first time—
He was thinking about Chloe in a way he never had before.
And that was a problem.
A big one.
Because if Jett ever noticed—
Yeah.
That wouldn’t end well.
Rhyus let out a quiet breath, dragging a hand over his face.
He needed to get a grip.
Needed to stop overthinking.
Needed to remember exactly where the line was.
Simple.
Clear.
Untouchable.
…
Right?
Upstairs, Chloe closed her bedroom door softly behind her.
Then she leaned against it, exhaling slowly.
Her heart was still racing.
But not from nerves.
From something else.
Something she had waited years to feel.
A small smile tugged at her lips as she stared at the ceiling.
“He noticed,” she whispered to herself.
Finally.
And this time—
She wasn’t going to let him forget it.
