Chapter 109\u00a0<\/p>\n
Athena\u2019s POV\u00a0<\/p>\n
4100\u00a0<\/p>\n
It had been three days since I\u2019d moved into my new place, and they had been some of the most peaceful days I\u2019d experienced in years,\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019d worried I wouldn\u2019t be able to sleep that first night, surrounded by unfamiliar sounds and shadows, but my body had surprised me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Maybe it was the exhaustion from moving, or maybe it was the simple relief of having my own space, but I\u2019d slept deeply and dreamlessly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The kind of sleep that actually restored you instead of leaving you more tired than when you went to bed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My morning routine had become something I genuinely looked forward to. Making coffee in my own kitchen, choosing what to wear without worrying about anyone else\u2019s opinion, stepping out onto my small balcony to check the weather. These tiny acts of independence\u00a0<\/p>\n
felt like small victories.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The commute to work wasn\u2019t bad either. My apartment was close enough to the office that the cab ride was short and affordable.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I still hadn\u2019t gotten the car I wanted, though I could probably ask Orion and have one by the end of the week. But I had a feeling he was\u00a0<\/p>\n
deliberately not offering, giving me the chance to handle it myself. It was his way of supporting my independence without making me feel\u00a0<\/p>\n
like a charity case.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I hadn\u2019t seen my handsome neighbor since that first day with the cookies, which honestly was a relief.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was terrible at small talk with strangers, especially when those strangers looked like they\u2019d stepped off a magazine cover. The less\u00a0<\/p>\n
complicated my life was right now, the better.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But today was different. Today I was buzzing with excitement about something that had nothing to do with apartments or neighbors or\u00a0<\/p>\n
the careful balance I was trying to maintain with my family.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Today I was taking a huge step toward something I\u2019d dreamed about these past few weeks.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was going to learn how to race motorcycles,\u00a0<\/p>\n
The thought sent electricity shooting through my entire body. I couldn\u2019t stop grinning as I moved around my apartment, getting ready for\u00a0<\/p>\n
what felt like the most important evening I\u2019d had in months.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I hadn\u2019t told Tristan, of course, I couldn\u2019t tell him, not just because I needed his permission, but because I knew exactly what would happen.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He\u2019d get that protective look in his eyes, the one that made him look older and sadder. He\u2019d list all the reasons it was dangerous, all the\u00a0<\/p>\n
ways I could get hurt. He\u2019d probably try to talk me out of it entirely.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
8:48 Wed, Jan 7\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 109\u00a0<\/p>\n
100\u00a0<\/p>\n
And right now, I couldn\u2019t handle having someone else\u2019s fear dim the bright excitement I felt when I thought about flying down a track on\u00a0<\/p>\n
two wheels.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I hadn\u2019t told anyone except Sarah, and I\u2019d practically begged her not to mention it to Orion.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you sure about this?\u201d she\u2019d asked when I\u2019d called her yesterday, barely able to contain my enthusiasm.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sure. I know it sounds crazy, but Sarah, I can\u2019t explain how much I want this. It\u2019s like there\u2019s this part of me that\u2019s been sleeping for\u00a0<\/p>\n
years, and it\u2019s finally waking up.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She\u2019d been quiet for a long moment before saying, \u201cThen you should do it. Just promise me you\u2019ll be careful.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I trusted Sarah completely. She was like the big sister I\u2019d never had, protective but not controlling. She understood the difference between\u00a0<\/p>\n
supporting someone and trying to manage their choices.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I hadn\u2019t told Leah because, well, Leah didn\u2019t have a filter. She was wonderful and loyal and I loved her dearly, but asking her to keep a\u00a0<\/p>\n
secret was like asking water not to be wet.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I walked over to my bed and stared at the black leather jacket I\u2019d bought yesterday after talking to Derek about my plan.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Derek was Jake\u2019s business partner at the racing center, and he\u2019d been surprisingly easy to convince. Maybe because I\u2019d sweetened the deal\u00a0<\/p>\n
by agreeing to go on one date with him if he taught me to ride and kept my identity secret from Tristan.\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou want to learn to race?\u201d he\u2019d asked, his eyebrows shooting up toward his hairline.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to learn everything. How to handle a bike, how to take corners, how to feel like I\u2019m flying.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
His surprise had quickly turned into genuine enthusiasm. \u201cI can teach you that. And don\u2019t worry about Tristan finding out from me. What you do with your life is your business.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He\u2019d even offered to let me use one of his bikes until I could get my own, which had made the whole thing feel suddenly, wonderfully\u00a0<\/p>\n
real.\u00a0<\/p>\n
After our conversation, I\u2019d gone straight to the store and bought the leather jacket and matching pants that were now laid out on my bed\u00a0<\/p>\n
like armor for a battle I was eager to fight.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There wouldn\u2019t be an actual race tonight, just a lesson, so I didn\u2019t need to wear the full gear yet. But I\u2019d put the jacket on anyway, just to see how it looked, and the person staring back at me in the mirror had been someone I barely recognized,\u00a0<\/p>\n
Someone fierce. Someone ready for adventure. Someone who looked like she could handle whatever the world threw at her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The thrill of it made my stomach flutter in the best possible way, like I was standing at the edge of a cliff about to jump and knowing I had wings.\u00a0<\/p>\n
8:48 Wed, Jan 7\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 109\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
I walked back to my closet and chose dark jeans and a fitted crop top that would give me freedom of movement. Nothing too fancy, but clothes that made me feel confident and strong.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As I got dressed, I couldn\u2019t stop thinking about what it would feel like to lean into a curve at high speed, to feel that perfect balance between control and letting go.\u00a0<\/p>\n
100\u00a0<\/p>\n
I sent Derek a quick text: \u201cOn my way. Are you ready for this?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
His response came back immediately: \u201cBeen ready since you called. I\u2019m already here waiting.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The cab ride to the racing center felt like the longest twenty minutes of my life. I kept checking my phone, bouncing my leg, running through everything Derek had told me about the basics of motorcycle handling. My palms were actually sweating with anticipation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When the cab pulled up to the racing center, I paid quickly and stepped out onto the sidewalk, taking a deep breath of the evening air that smelled like motor oil and possibility.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But then I stopped dead in my tracks, as I stare at the center before me. My breathing heavy and shallow same time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What the actual hell.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Memories Drifted Into Soft Silence by Kyx Frost 109 Chapter 109\u00a0 Athena\u2019s POV\u00a0 4100\u00a0 It had been three days since […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[77],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26266","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-second-gear-of-love-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26266","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26266"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26266\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26266"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26266"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26266"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}