[BL] CRAVING HIM: Addicted to His Voice Chapter 174: Do You Regret It

~Zayn’s POV~

I told myself closing the restaurant was a small price to pay. If it ant being with Evric, I thought I could bear it. But the truth has settled in and is heavier than I expected.

At first, it felt simple, lock the doors, step away, breathe. But now, the silence gnaws at . I can’t decide what hurts more, the ache of walking away from the place I built with my own hands, or the void of not knowing what cos next. Perhaps it’s both. Perhaps I am too bound to the life I created within those walls, and stripping it away has left hollow.

Still, I can’t stay trapped in this emptiness. The restlessness inside is already spilling into the one thing I swore to protect, my relationship with Evric. What’s the use of giving up everything for love, if I only bring sadness into it? If I’ve chosen him as my happiness, then I must find a way to be whole again, for him, for us.

Evans called earlier, said we should et up. I agreed. Maybe it will help clear my head.

But first, I’ll wait for Evric to leave for work. Later in the evening, I’ll head out to et Nantam and Dean. Once I’m there, I’ll send Evans the location.

Just as I sank deeper into my thoughts, Evric’s voice pulled back.

"Zayn," he called gently.

"Yes?" I looked up at him.

"I want you to understand sothing," he said, his tone steady. "I’m willing to do anything for you. I won’t ask you what happened anymore. From now on, I’ll only ask one thing, What’s your plan? What have you decided?"

A smile tugged at my lips, though it was faint. "Babe, you really don’t have to worry. There’s no way I’d make a decision without letting you know."

His eyes eased. "Then don’t carry it all on your own. I want you to rember, you’re not alone in this."

My heart raced at his words. I gave him a little nod. "Yes. I know."

After I stood up and cleared the plates from the table, Evric’s voice followed .

"Or... do you miss your mom?" he asked carefully. "If you do, we can go visit her. You know that."

I paused for a mont, "I do miss her," I admitted quietly, setting the last dish down. "But now isn’t the right ti."

Evric studied for a long mont, then gave a tiny nod. "Okay, babe. When you’re ready."

A little while later, Evric left the living room to prepare for work. I sat in silence, staring down at my phone, my mind drifting aimlessly. Soon he returned, freshly dressed, holding himself with the quiet confidence that always made my chest ache. He stopped in front of , handing his tie so I could fix his outfit. I straightened his collar, styled his hair, and brushed away invisible creases until he looked flawless.

He caught my gaze with a grin. "Babe, how do I look?"

"You look perfect," I said honestly.

He kissed on the lips, warm and certain. "That’s it. Your man is very handso."

I couldn’t help but laugh softly. "You are."

After that, Evric left for work, and the house grew quiet. I busied myself with cleaning the bedroom, doing what was necessary, and even what wasn’t, just to keep my hands moving.

Finally, evening arrived. I dressed up and headed out to et my friends. Dean had sent the location.

Once I arrived, I quickly shared the location with Evans. Then I found Dean waiting at one of the corner tables.

The place he chose was perfect an open-air café with a calm, easy atmosphere, cars parked neatly just across the street. The air carried the faint aroma of roasted coffee and night air, both relaxing and private. Typical Dean, he always knew the best spots.

As I sat down, I asked, "Didn’t you say you were with Nantam? Where is he?"

Dean chuckled. "He’s on his way."

But the lightness didn’t last. His smile faded, and his eyes narrowed with quiet concern.

I leaned back against the chair, watching him. "What is it? What happened?"

He hesitated, then leaned forward, lowering his voice. "Zayn... tell the truth. What’s really going on with your restaurant?"

A heavy sigh escaped before I could stop it. "Dean, I’ve already explained it to you," I muttered, my tone sharper than I intended. "There’s nothing else to talk about."

Dean didn’t look convinced, he looked like he wanted to press further, but before he could, Nantam arrived, along with Nicki and one of his other friends.

They settled in quickly, laughter and small talk filling the space. But I couldn’t ignore the weight of Nicki’s gaze. From the mont they arrived, his eyes had been fixed on . At first, I brushed it off. But after a while, the staring beca too much.

Finally, I turned to him. "Nicki, why are you staring at like that? Is there sothing on my face?"

Nicki leaned back in his chair, his lips curling into a smirk as he shot his words straight at .

"It looks to like this new relationship of yours hasn’t done you any good. You’re dating a rich man, sure, but what has it given you? Nothing. Instead of lifting you, it’s flipped your life upside down. The man you’re with, he isn’t making your life better, he’s ruining it."

Dean snapped, imdiately. "Nicki, keep quiet."

Nicki didn’t shut up. He pushed harder, louder, the kind of thing that claws at you until sothing inside breaks. "What do you an keep quiet? Didn’t you all see it? Why are you all pretending nothing’s wrong? Aren’t you his friends? Look at him, he was doing fine before this. Now he has no work, nothing. This relationship will drain him. Evric bought you into being gay, and now he’s destroying you." The words landed like stones.

My face went hot. I opened my mouth, fumbled for sothing to say, but he kept going. "Just accept it, this relationship won’t last. It’ll drain you. Evric will ruin you."

My anger coiled. I tried to keep it folded, to breathe through the insult, but hearing Evric’s na spat like that as if it were filth was too much.

The next thing I knew my fist moved on its own. My knuckles connected with his jaw. The world narrowed to the dull, concrete impact and the sound of his chair tipping.

Nicki hit the floor with a startled, indignant scream. People around us gasped; forks clinked to plates. He cupped his face, disbelief and humiliation painting his features.

"Did you just...?" Nicki scrambled to his feet, clutching his jaw. "Zayn, you punched because of Evric?"

"Say one more word about my boyfriend," I said, every syllable icier than I ant, "and I’ll make sure you end up in a hospital." My voice trembled, not from fear but from sothing raw and fierce I couldn’t contain.

I expected soone to yell or to call security instead, but slow, mocking applause broke the tension.

I turned. Evans stood at the fringe of the group, clapping once, eyes bright and amused. He’d arrived without anyone noticing. The sound of his hands cut through the tension like a knife. "Well, well, well," he said, smiling as if he’d watched a play. "That was satisfying. I expected more, but not bad."

Nicki’s face drained of color. He looked like a man who’d been punched and then told he was ridiculous for reacting. He tried to et Evans’s eyes and failed.

Evans stepped forward, his presence the kind that makes people rearrange themselves to fit. "Zayn," he said, calm but not gentle, "co sit with ."

We moved to the next pair of tables. Evans dropped into his seat like a man who owned the world and expected it to behave. I sat across from him.

Around us, the cafe slowly ca back to life, people ate and talked again, but the air at their table had changed. Nicki, who monts ago was loud and bold, now sat back quietly, his confidence gone, his eyes darting nervously.

Evans leaned in a fraction, voice low. "You handled that well," he murmured. Not a complint. More like a statent of fact.

I swallowed, pulse still high. "He needed to shut up."

After a while, once my heartbeat had settled and the sting of Nicki’s words had begun to fade, Evans finally broke the silence between us. His voice was low, steady.

"How have you been holding up all these days?"

The question nearly cracked open. For a second, I felt tears press at the back of my eyes, but I forced myself to hold them back. Not after what just happened. Not here. So I drew in a breath and said quietly, "It hasn’t been easy, Evans."

He studied carefully, his lips parting as if he wanted to speak but instead, he stayed silent, giving space.

I leaned forward a little, the words slipping out before I could stop them. "I thought this would be easy... but it’s not."

Evans nodded slowly, his gaze unwavering. "Zayn, you’re braver than you know. You gave up sothing that important, for love."

I turned my eyes to him.

Then ca the question that made my chest tighten.

"Do you regret it?"