Page 23 of Unfinished Noise

Jamie nodded against his shoulder. “But you’re with me now.”

Spencer needed to hear that.

Jamie stayed tucked against him, quiet in that way he got when his brain was still sorting through the day. Spencer let his hand drift up and down Jamie’s arm, slow, steady, grounding. The room grew calmer now—like the chaos outside had finally shut up for a minute.

Jamie broke the silence. “Tomorrow’s gonna be busy, huh? Everyone wants to do something.”

Spencer grinned. “Yeah, they do. Alfie already asked if we wanted to go to breakfast with them. Billy said something about checking out the arcade. Nathan mentioned a hike.” He rolled his eyes. “A hike. In this heat.”

Jamie snorted softly. “You hate hiking.”

“I do,” Spencer said. “And I’m not doing it.”

Jamie leaned back enough to look at him, eyes curious. “So… what do you wanna do tomorrow?”

Spencer didn’t even have to think about it. “Honestly? I kinda want you.”

Jamie blinked, surprised but not in a bad way. “Me?”

“Yeah,” Spencer said, shrugging as if it weren’t a big deal even though it was. “Just us. No plans. No people. No Billy wandering off. No Alfie dragging us into some weird adventure. Just… you and me. A day where we don’t have to worry about anything.”

Jamie’s expression softened, the tension in his shoulders easing. “That sounds perfect.”

Spencer nudged him gently. “We could sleep in. Order room service. Watch dumb movies. Or go sit by the pool and pretend we’re on vacation.”

Jamie laughed, quiet and warm. “I like all of that.”

“Good,” Spencer said. “Then it’s settled. Tomorrow’s ours.”

Jamie’s smile turned small and shy, the kind that always made Spencer’s chest feel too full. “Our day.”

Spencer pressed a kiss to the top of his head. “Our day for sure.”

Jamie melted against him again, seeming to let the last of the night’s weight slip off his shoulders. Tomorrow would be simple. Easy. Just them. Everything might be okay.

Chapter Nine

Jamie

Jamie woke up slow, the kind of slow where his brain lagged like a bad Wi‑Fi connection. Morning shoved its way into the hotel room without permission—bright light leaking around the curtains like an obnoxious guest who didn’t bother knocking. It hit him right in the eyes, loud and insistent, and he groaned into the pillow.

Spencer was already up, parked at the tiny table by the window with a cup of coffee and hair sticking out in three different directions, like he’d lost a fight with his own pillow. The steam from his mug curled lazily in the air, completely at odds with Jamie’s chaotic, half‑awake annoyance. Spencer glanced over, one eyebrow raised, clearly amused at Jamie’s slow-motion suffering.

Jamie dragged himself upright, blinking against the glare that kept barging in. Mornings were rude. Spencer, unfortunately, looked like he’d made peace with them.

Jamie stretched, groaning softly. His eyes, chest, and thoughts all weighed him down. Yesterday had wrung him out more than he wanted to admit.

Spencer glanced over at him. “Morning, sunshine.”

Jamie blinked at him. Normally that would’ve made him smile. Today it landed weird, like Spencer was teasing him for being slow or messy or… something. He wasn’t even sure what. His stomach tightened anyway.

“Don’t call me that,” Jamie muttered, rubbing his face.

Spencer froze mid-sip. “Uh… okay. Sorry.”

Jamie’s stomach tightened the second the words left his mouth, like something inside him had snapped too fast. Heat crept up the back of his neck, the kind that made him want to rub at it or hide behind his hair. Spencer’s pet names were usually easy—warm, familiar, part of the rhythm they’d built without ever talking about it. Sunshine, sweetheart, troublemaker. Jamie normally soaked them in like sunlight.

But today, the sound of it hit wrong, too sharp around the edges. He didn’t understand why it bothered him, why his chest tightened over something so harmless. The reaction came first, the regret right behind it, and the confusion trailing after like a stray shadow he couldn’t shake.