Page 18 of Safe Place

I head inside my building, into my elevator, up to the penthouse. The doors open and there they are—Wyatt on the kitchen island, long legs kicked out like he owns the place, and Grant sprawled on the couch watching SportsCenter.

I should be annoyed. But honestly, it’s kind of nice to come home to a house that’s not empty. I don’t even mind seeing the mess they leave behind.

Still, I can’t help but give them a hard time.

“Why are you guys always here?” I ask. “Do you two not literally live in this building?”

Neither of them answers. Wyatt just shrugs and sips something green from a glass bottle.

It’s true—they do live here. Grant’s got a unit on the seventh floor, courtesy of my dad. One of the many perks that come with being the unofficial third Vale son. I’m actually happy about that. And Wyatt bought into the building last year when it went up—the apartment right next to Grant’s—something about proximity to campus and skyline views. And probably Grant and me. Not that he’d admit that.

I pull out the bags from the campus store. Hoodies, long sleeves, and baseball caps.

“Here,” I say, tossing the bag of non-defective clothes in Grant’s direction. “Wear these to Intro to Comm.”

He catches one mid-air, expression twisting into his annoying smile. “What the hell is this? Who are you and what have you done with my best friend?”

“Woah, you go on a Westcliffe shopping spree or something?” Wyatt adds.

I ignore them. “Just wear them to the class.”

“Oh, Micah. You’re fucked, aren’t you?” Grant teases, knowing exactly why I bought these.

Wyatt eyes the pile. “Sophie’s cute.”

I pause. Cap still in hand. “Yeah. I know. Stop trying to charm her, bro. You have a girlfriend.”

He takes another sip of whatever overpriced juice he’s drinking. “Not sure how much longer that’s gonna last.”

That gets Grant’s attention. He sits up. “You and Kate? It’s about time.”

Kate and Wyatt look like they were made to be together—Kate with her long, wavy red hair, green eyes, and the figure of a model. Then there’s Wyatt—objectively the best looking guy at Westcliffe. Side by side, they’re the kind of couple you’d expect to see on the red carpet. But she has a huge flaw; she’s crazy. I don’t usually call women crazy, but that’s the only way to describe Kate.

Wyatt sighs, and I can tell the whole topic is weighing a lot on him. “Yeah. I don’t know. It’s like everything’s always curated with her. Surface-level. She thinks I’m insane for wanting to start my own firm after law school. She’s urging me to just go corporate through my dad’s connections and make our lives easier.” He makes air quotes with his fingers.

I lean against the counter, arms crossed. “That’s like years away. You haven't even completed undergrad yet.”

He nods. “Exactly. But with Kate, it’s like she doesn’t see me; she just sees the life she could have with me. I want someone who just likes me for me.”

There’s a beat of silence.

Grant breaks it. “Damn. I thought I was the emotionally unstable one in this group.”

I exhale and shake my head. “Fuck, man. You know there’s gonna be a lot of girls chasing you—for your name, your dad, your money. The whole deal. Your old man’s one of the most powerful judges in the country. Good luck finding someone who doesn’t see all that before she sees you.”

Wyatt lets out a low breath and nods. “Right back at you. Take a look in the mirror sometime.”

And just like that, Sophie flickers into my mind—her soft voice, that focused look when she’s reading, how she rolled her eyes when I teased her in class. The way she lit up when she told me about the hoodie discount like she was letting me in on some kind of secret.

“What if I already found her?” I say, quieter than I mean to.

Grant looks up from the sweatshirt he’s holding. “What?”

“The first day I met Sophie, she mentioned that she’d never met anyone who lived at The Haven at Vale. She said it must be nice.” I let out a dry laugh. “My name is literally Micah Vale. I don’t think she’s made the connection.”

Grant smirks. “Aw, well that’s actually kind of cute.”

“Yeah, and don’t even think about it, West,” I warn, pointing at him. “She also works at the bookstore. She offered to sneak me a discount like I’d be excited about saving a few bucks.” I shake my head, almost laughing. “She has no idea who I am. She still wanted to help me.”