The door clicked open, and Luca hesitated on the threshold, holding guilt in one hand and a crinkled plastic bag in the other.
The familiar scent of fabric softener and someone's strong coffee filled the air. Noel was stretched out on his bed, laptop resting on his stomach, headphones in but not fully on.
Luca stepped in, kicked the door shut with his heel, then hovered in the middle of the room.
He cleared his throat.
Noel didn't look up.
Luca walked over, dropping the bag of snacks on the edge of Noel's bed. "I got you these," he said, casual, like it was no big deal.
Noel lifted one side of his headphones, eyes flicking to the bag but not reaching for it. "What's that supposed to be?"
"A peace offering," Luca said with a small smirk. "Come on, your favorite chips. And that weird mango candy you always steal from me."
Noel exhaled through his nose. "You think you can just trash the room, vanish all night, then come back and throw snacks at the problem?"
Luca shoved his hands in his pockets. "I didn't vanish. I just—went out."
"You didn't even say anything," Noel sat up now, eyes locked on him.
"You left the room a mess, didn't respond to any messages, then roll back with a bag of chips like that fixes it?"
Luca's smirk faltered slightly. "It's not that deep."
"It is that deep," Noel snapped. "You don't live alone, Luca. I'm not your housekeeper."
Luca's tone cooled. "I never said you were. I was gonna clean it, alright? Just… later."
"Yeah, 'later' after someone forces a mop into your hands," Noel muttered, pushing the snacks aside without touching them.
Luca's jaw tightened. "I'm trying to apologize here."
"No. You're trying to buy your way out," Noel said sharply. "But not everything works like that."
Luca stared at him, face unreadable.
Silence sprawled between them, thick as concrete and twice as hard to break.
"I don't need chips," Noel added quietly, going back to his laptop. "I need a roommate who gives a damn."
Luca stood there, still, the bag of snacks now forgotten between them.
Luca didn't say anything. Not even a scoff this time. He just stared at Noel a moment longer, then walked over to his bed and dropped onto it like his body gave out.
His phone was in his hand the second his back hit the mattress.
Luca: yo u up?
Luca: need your brain for a sec
A few seconds passed before Jordan replied.
Jordan: it's not even 10 bro, what did u break this time?
Luca's thumb hovered over the screen.
Luca: my roommate's mad as hell
Luca: i messed up the room and dipped last night
Luca: came back with snacks but he's acting like i punched his cat or something
Jordan: lol damn snacks really??
Jordan: bruh that's not an apology that's bribery
Luca sighed, eyes flicking over to Noel who was now typing something furiously on his laptop, eyes sharp and unreadable.
He typed again.
Luca: i don't do the whole "sorry" thing. i just don't. idk how
Luca: but he's looking at me like i just proved every bad thing he ever thought of me
Jordan: so maybe don't be the stereotype then?
Jordan: just say it. even if it sounds weird.
Jordan: "my bad" is a start. something real. he don't need chips. he needs effort.
Luca locked his phone and let it fall on his chest.
He stared up at the ceiling, jaw shifting slightly.
He hated this. Not because Noel was wrong—but because Jordan saw through him faster than he saw through himself.
And maybe, just maybe, he actually did want Noel to stop looking at him like that.
The silence between them was loud.
Luca sat up slowly, elbows on his knees, palms rubbing over his jeans like he needed to shake off the nerves.
He looked at Noel once—who didn't even glance back—and then stared at the floor like it had the words for him.
Finally, he exhaled. His tongue felt dry. "...Look," he muttered, voice low. "I know I messed up."
Noel's fingers paused on the keyboard, but he didn't turn. That was already something.
"I didn't mean to trash the place or whatever. I just left in a rush." Luca scratched the back of his neck, fingers restless. "Wasn't tryna be a jerk."
Still no response.
Luca bit the inside of his cheek. "I'm not good at this. Apologizing and all that… I don't really do it. Not because I don't care. I just never had to.
" He looked at Noel now, finally, his voice steadying. "But you're right. It's not just my space. You don't owe me patience."
Noel turned slowly, one brow raised. "You're seriously saying that?"
"I mean—yeah." Luca lifted a shoulder. "I still think you're dramatic. But I get it."
A long pause.
Noel studied him like he wasn't sure if Luca was messing with him or actually trying.
Then finally—"…That was the most decent thing I've heard you say since you moved in."
Luca smirked faintly. "Didn't kill me, did it?"
Noel didn't smile, but his eyes weren't so cold now. "Just don't expect chips to fix everything."
"No more snacks. Got it." Luca held up his hands like surrender. "Real words. Big-boy stuff."
There was a pause. A quiet stretch.
Then Noel went back to his laptop, but this time with a little less ice in his shoulders.
And Luca leaned back on his bed, letting out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding.