Chapter 116
Noah Whitmore,
I walked down the corridor with a wide smile, my steps light, almost bouncing.
The plan had worked.
Elijah and the Reaper must be locked up together right now, finally having the conversation they so desperately needed.
I felt an absurd satisfaction.
Not because I’m conceited, but because seeing them understanding each other–opening up–was a relief I didn’t even know I needed.
I never thought I’d have a friend in this hellish prison.
Inferno Bay eats people from the inside out.
Here, any bond is seen as weakness.
But Elijah… Elijah managed to break through.
Not romantically, of course.
But as someone who saw me beyond the uniform, beyond my sarcastic armor. For the first time, someone
noticed the real Noah behind the nickname “Fox.”
My real name is Noah Whitmore. I’m twenty–five.
My story… it’s not pretty. I come from a wealthy family–people who care about appearances and social events, determined to keep up appearances even when everything inside is rotting.
From a young age, I made it clear: I’m gay.
I never hid it. I never felt I needed to.
But my parents did.
They saw shame.
They saw weakness.
They were conservative, racist, and homophobic down to the last hair.
Every day, I got more silenced at home.
1/4
Chapter 116
Then, when I was twenty–three, I hit a breaking point. I was in my third semester of college.
I came home earlier than usual.
No one was there.
Except for him.
A “family friend,” as my mother called him. An influential, respected man. And a closeted, twisted homosexual.
He tried to rape me.
Cornered me.
Said I deserved it–for being gay.
So I did what anyone would.
I fought back.
I grabbed the first thing I could reach and struck him hard.
His head split open.
He dropped dead on the spot.
I thought my family would protect me….
Defend me…
But instead, they turned me in like trash.
He was the son of a congressman.
His father used all his influence to bury me here, insisting I had acted out of hate, saying my “moral deviation” explained the crime.
So I ended up in Inferno Bay.
Convicted a murderer.
Got the orange uniform.
Got everyone’s contempt.
And since then, I’ve survived/
2/4
Chapter 116
In here, I learned to smile out of necessity.
To laugh at jokes that made me sick.
To hide behind sarcasm and snark.
No one ever asked how I really felt.
No one wanted to know the real Noah.
Until Elijah showed up.
So sweet, so lost, but with a light in his eyes that reminded me there was still something good in this
world.
He didn’t judge me.
He didn’t treat me like disposable meat.
He was kind.
He was a friend.
And that means more than anything in this place.
I’ll always help him.
Always.
With advice, with tough love when needed.
Or with crazy schemes–like this one I pulled off.
I laughed softly, remembering his expression when I got him to bait the Reaper.
The kid was so nervous.
But he trusted me.
And knowing someone trusts you in here… that’s rare.
It’s a treasure.
I’m sure right now that rascal Elijah is locked in, making love to the Reaper.
I can even picture his coy grin and the words “Reaper, please.”
I rolled my eyes with a smile.
3/4
Chapter 116
Who would’ve thought, huh, Noah? The kid was thrown here for trying to survive… Now he has someone worth fighting for.
Even if it’s not romantic.
Even if it’s just friendship.
Honestly, that friendship saves me every day.
I took a deep breath and kept pacing the corridor, still smiling.
Deep down, my heart ached a little–for everything I lost.
For the family who never wanted me.
For the freedom ripped away.
But knowing that, even in this hole, I found something real… that gave me hope.
Chapter Comments
36
POST COMMENT NOW
S SHARE
