The Chase

Was it just Callum, or was Micah avoiding him?

Callum shoved his free hand into his pocket, sipping his coffee as he stood by the glass wall overlooking the office floor. His gaze zeroed in on Micah, who was talking to another employee, clipboard in hand. From this distance, he couldn't hear what they were saying, but Micah's animated gestures and the slight tilt of his head suggested he was explaining something.

And then it happened.

Micah's gaze darted to the side and met Callum's.

The intern froze like a deer in headlights, his expression twisting into something akin to panic. His cheeks flushed red—so fast, so obvious—and he quickly turned back to his coworker. He muttered something, handed over the clipboard, and walked—no, rushed—out of Callum's line of sight.

Callum squinted, humming against the rim of his coffee cup. "Yep," he murmured under his breath. "He's avoiding me."

A shoulder bumped into his, pulling him from his thoughts. Ryan stood beside him, holding a file folder. "Let's go," Ryan said, gesturing toward the hall leading to Callum's office.

Callum followed Ryan, their footsteps echoing softly on the polished floors. Ryan was saying something about budgets or quarterly projections—Callum wasn't paying attention. His mind was too preoccupied with Micah's strange behavior.

Micah had been doing this all day. If Callum took the stairs, Micah would take the elevator. If Callum turned a corner, Micah would duck into an office. Earlier, when they'd almost crossed paths in the break room, Micah had pretended to be engrossed in the vending machine for five whole minutes. Callum had let it slide, for Micah's sake—and because Ryan had been waiting for him.

He was the complete opposite of subtlety but, if Callum had to grade him, he'd give the intern an E for Effort.

But now? There was no doubt about it. Micah Liu was definitely avoiding him.

"Callum?"

Ryan's voice broke through his thoughts. Callum blinked and turned to his friend. "What?"

"When was the last time you spoke to your dad?" Ryan asked casually, but the sharpness in his tone betrayed something heavier.

Callum's mood soured instantly. "Well, you know Dad. We don't talk that often."

Ryan hummed, his expression unreadable.

"What?" Callum pressed, narrowing his eyes.

Ryan hesitated, glancing down at the folder in his hands. "You should talk to him soon," he said carefully. "It's about the company. I think—"

"Callum! Just the person I was looking for!"

Both men turned at the sound of Genesis's voice. She was striding toward them, clipboard in hand, her usual energetic pace brisker than normal.

"Hold on," Callum said, turning back to Ryan. "What were you going to say?"

Ryan shook his head, his jaw tightening. "Never mind. We'll talk about it later." Without another word, he turned and walked off, leaving Callum frowning after him.

'Weird,' Callum thought.

"Callum," Genesis said, stopping in front of him. "Got a minute?"

Callum turned his attention to her, forcing himself to shelve Ryan's cryptic comment for now. "What's up?"

"Preparations for LevelUp are going great," she said, flipping through her clipboard. "We're firmly within budget, so I was thinking of spending a bit extra on face paints for the kids. What do you think?"

Callum sipped his coffee. "Sounds good."

Genesis beamed. "Great! Just wanted to run it by you since you're the boss."

"I trust you'll make the event great," Callum replied with a small smile.

"Thanks," she said, then pulled out her phone. "Hold on a sec."

She dialed a number, raising the phone to her ear. "Hey, it's me. I'm upstairs, left of the elevator. Yeah, come here."

Callum raised an eyebrow but said nothing, watching as Genesis hung up. A minute later, Micah came hurrying down the hallway, his gaze fixed on the clipboard in his hands.

"Hugo says he's done with the electricals, and—"

He finally looked up and spotted Callum standing beside Genesis.

"Mr. Pierce!" He squeaked, freezing mid-step like a kid caught sneaking out past curfew. His eyes were wide, and his glasses slipped slightly down his nose.

Callum fought the urge to smirk as Micah's face turned an impressive shade of red. Cute, Callum thought. Micah was so cute when he was embarrassed.

"Micah," Genesis said, oblivious to the tension. "When you've gotten the face paints, bring the receipts to Callum."

"That won't be necessary," Callum interjected. "They're best kept with you or the accounting department."

Genesis shrugged. "Alright then." She turned to Micah with a smile. "See you later." With that, she walked off, leaving Callum and Micah alone.

Micah fidgeted, clutching the clipboard to his chest like a shield. "Well! It was nice seeing you, Mr. Pierce. There's work to be done, errands to run!" He turned on his heel and started walking—no, practically speed-walking—away.

Callum sighed, drained the last of his coffee, and followed him.

Micah's pace quickened.

Callum matched it.

"There's work to be done!" Micah called over his shoulder.

"Are you avoiding me?" Callum asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Of course not!" Micah replied, his voice pitched high with panic.

"Then why are you running?"

"I'm not running!"

Callum was about to retort, but Micah's hasty retreat nearly sent him crashing into someone rounding the corner. Before Micah could collide with them, Callum's hand wrapped around Micah's wrist, warm and firm, tugging him out of the way. Micah stumbled, his back hitting the wall, and Callum stepped in close—too close. Their breaths mingled in the narrow space between them, and Callum could feel the nervous tremble in Micah's frame. The scent of coffee and something faintly sweet—Micah's shampoo, maybe—lingered in the air

"Callum?" Micah breathed, his voice soft and unsure, his green eyes wide behind his glasses.

Staring down at Micah, looking into his wide eyes and standing inches away from his erratic breathing, Callum's mind flashed back to the night before— to Micah's breathy voice over the mic, the sound of his shallow gasps during the Aphrodite scene and the phone call after. Heat coiled low in Callum's stomach, and he released Micah's wrist like it had burned him.

"Micah," he said softly. "Why have you been avoiding me?"

"I haven't—"

"Don't lie." Callum's tone was firm but not unkind. He knew Micah's tell—the slight twitch of his brow when he was trying to hide something. Ashur's brow did the same when he lied.

Micah froze, then sighed, pushing his glasses up his nose and looking away. "I have been avoiding you."

Callum leaned against the wall, crossing his arms. "If it's about yesterday, you can forget about that. We should've played something else. Fucking Mario Kart would've been better. That's my fault."

Micah shook his head. "No, it's mine. I picked the game."

Callum smiled gently. "Well, I'll pick next time."

Micah's lips twitched into a small smile, and Callum's chest warmed at the sight.

"I know yesterday was uncomfortable," Callum said seriously. "But we can move past it. I just want to know we're okay."

Micah hesitated, then nodded. "We're okay."

"Good." Callum straightened, stepping aside to give Micah room to leave.

Micah lingered for a moment, then grabbed Callum's hand. "Sorry," he said quickly, letting go. "I just wanted to tell you something."

Callum turned to him fully. "What is it?"

"I thought about what you said," Micah said quietly, "about being more confident in myself and my work. So… I decided to participate in a game jam."

Callum's smile widened. "That's a great step. I'm happy for you."

Micah blushed, looking down at his clipboard. "Thanks. I'll let you know how it goes. For now, I really need to get things ready for LevelUp."

"Of course," Callum said, stepping aside.

Micah stopped at the door and added, "Uh… Damian's going to be around for LevelUp. He says he wants to meet up with you."

Callum's smile faltered. "No offense, but tell your boyfriend to go fuck himself."

Micah's laugh was soft, almost shy. "I can't tell him that…"

He concluded the sentence with a whisper Callum couldn't quite catch and with that, he left.

But, as Callum stared after him, he was pretty sure the last part of that sentence was 'He might just take it seriously.'

And that confused him to no end.