Page 47 of Unfinished Noise

Jamie nodded, though his eyes were still a little red from crying earlier. “Yeah. I’m better now.”

The tight coil that had been wound in Spencer’s chest since yesterday finally eased, like a knot being worked apart by steady hands.

The moment Jamie sat beside him, something in Spencer relaxed and opened. It was subtle, almost private, like a door inside him easing off its hinges. The restaurant shifted with it. The warm lighting leaned in as if it understood how badly Spencer needed this closeness.

The soft clinking of silverware, the low hum of other conversations—they blurred into a gentle backdrop, something Spencer could sink into. But none of that was what steadied him. It was Jamie. Jamie’s presence. Jamie’s warmth. Jamie’s eyes met his as if he was checking to make sure Spencer was there.

Jamie leaned forward, elbows brushing the table, and Spencer felt the pull as if gravity had chosen a new center. His chest tightened—not with anxiety, but with that aching, familiar wanting he never said out loud. The kind that made him memorize the way Jamie’s fingers curled around the menu, the way his knee nudged Spencer’s under the table and stayed there, warm and sure.

A sense of deep connection settled between them, creating a private world just for two. Like the lighting dimmed for them with everything in the restaurant shifted to make room for the way Spencer felt when Jamie was close.

He didn’t need to check his shoulders or jaw to know he’d relaxed. He could feel it in the way his heartbeat steadied, in the way his focus narrowed on Jamie’s face, Jamie’s voice, Jamie’s presence. It was a relief threaded with longing, a silent ache that made the whole moment feel fragile and precious.

Jamie was here. And Spencer felt himself leaning toward him in every way that mattered, even the ones he didn’t dare name.

Jamie leaned into him, and Spencer’s posture shifted instinctively, turning toward him, letting their legs touch. His hand settled on Jamie’s knee without thinking, fingers no longer stiff but relaxed, tracing slow circles that matched the steadiness returning to his body. Jamie’s fingers curled around Spencer’s hand.

He turned slightly so he could see Jamie’s face fully. “Baby… you can’t ever turn your phone off like that again. Not when you’re traveling with us. Not when you’re away from me.”

“I didn’t want to talk while you were working. You know, make you upset that I left.”

“You can always leave a message,” Spencer whispered. “But you turned off your phone. And I need you to understand something—really understand it.” He squeezed Jamie’s knee. “You don’t get to disappear because you think you know what I want. You don’t get to decide you’re in the way without talking to me first.”

Jamie’s eyes softened, guilt flickering across his face as if he were already bracing for Spencer to be upset. “I just… I didn’t want to mess with your head,” he said. “You were working, and I didn’t want to be the guy who shows up saying he has to leave. I didn’t want to pull you out of your zone.”

Jamie’s words landed heavy—too heavy for what he was actually saying. “You’re not messing anything up,” Spencer said, shaking his head. “You’re part of this. You’re wanted at practices. You’re wanted at shows. I don’t want you separating yourself from us. I don’t want you sitting at home thinking you’re a distraction.” He hesitated, softer. “Or turning your phone off.”

Jamie blinked fast, like he was trying not to cry. “I didn’t leave because of that,” he whispered. “I left because Alfie needed me. He’s my best friend. Like Nathan is to you. He was… bad off. I couldn’t ignore that.”

He rubbed his thumb over his palm, a nervous habit Spencer had learned to read like a book. “I wrote you a note because I didn’t trust myself to talk without… without screwing up your focus. You were in work mode, and I didn’t want to be the reason you lost it.”

Spencer’s chest tightened. Jamie wasn’t only guilty—he was scared. Scared of being too much. Scared of being the wrong kind of important.

“Jamie,” Spencer said quietly, stepping closer, “you don’t ruin anything.”

Jamie swallowed hard, shoulders curling in like he was trying to make himself smaller. “I didn’t want to get it wrong,” he said, voice cracking. “Not with you.”

Jamie’s fear wrapped around every word, as if he were trying so hard not to break apart in front of him. It hit Spencer deeper than he expected, right in the place where he kept all the reasons he wanted Jamie close.

Spencer brushed a thumb across Jamie’s cheek. “I guess helping your friend is a good thing. But turning off your phones all night and day is very bad. That can’t happen again. Do you understand? I’ve never punished you, but I can tell you if this happens again, you will be punished.”

“Punish like Tom?”

“No. I would never lock you away and handcuff you. Never. I might spank you.”

“With your hand?”

“Yes, nothing too painful. Are you okay with that?”

“As long as you don’t lock me up. I can’t be locked up in a room.”

“That will never happen, but don’t you ever shut me out by phone.”

“I won’t, Daddy Spencer.”

“Okay then. Remember, I want you to be with me. I want you to be with us. You and Alfie both. Can you promise me that you will never turn off your phone?”

Jamie leaned into Spencer’s touch, eyes closing for a moment. “Okay. I’ll never turn off my phone. I promise.”