“All the Roads That Lead Back to You”

Liam Hart hadn’t seen Noah in three years.

Not since the night Noah packed a single suitcase, stood in the doorway of their dimly lit apartment, and whispered the words that had carved themselves into Liam’s bones:

“I need to figure out who I am… and I can’t do that here.”

Liam had watched him leave — silently, stupidly, painfully — because he didn’t know how to make someone stay when their heart was already halfway out the door.

Now, three years later, Liam stared at the invitation in his hand.

Laurel Ridge Annual Music Festival — Alumni Event

Special Guest: Noah Sullivan

Noah.

The Noah.

Noah with the voice that held light.

Noah with the smile that held warmth.

Noah with the heart Liam once thought he’d grow old beside.

Liam’s chest tightened.

He knew he shouldn’t go.

He absolutely shouldn’t go.

But he also knew he would.

Because there were some people you never truly walked away from.

Not even after three years.

---

The music festival grounds looked exactly the same — fairy lights strung across the oak trees, wooden stalls, the smell of popcorn melting in butter. Laughter tangled with guitar strings. Groups of old classmates hugged and compared jobs, marriages, life updates.

Liam slipped through the crowd quietly, hands shoved into his jacket pockets.

He was here for one reason.

One person.

And when he reached the small open-air stage, he saw him.

Noah Sullivan, standing under soft golden lights, guitar in hand, curls longer than Liam remembered. His shoulders were broader now, his posture sure, but the moment he smiled at the cheering crowd…

God.

It was like being nineteen again.

“Thank you,” Noah said into the mic, voice warm. “This next song is… an old one. I wrote it for someone I loved. Someone I lost.”

Liam’s breath caught.

Noah strummed the first chord — and Liam knew the song instantly.

He had heard it a thousand times.

Late at night.

In the quiet of their shared apartment.

In the dark, with Noah’s head leaning on his shoulder.

It was their song.

The crowd listened quietly as Noah sang.

If I ever find you again,

I hope you know the door’s still open.

I hope you know I never stopped waiting.

I hope you know—

Noah’s voice cracked slightly.

Liam’s heart clenched.

He shouldn’t stay.

He shouldn’t listen.

He shouldn’t—

But Noah glanced up.

And saw him.

Their eyes met.

Everything inside Liam went very, very still.

Noah froze for half a second onstage — just long enough that the audience probably thought it was dramatic effect.

But Liam knew that look.

Shock.

Relief.

Fear.

Hope.

Noah recovered fast, finishing the song with trembling fingers. When he stepped offstage, he didn’t even bother greeting the crowd. He walked — no, practically ran — straight toward Liam.

They stood facing each other, the world noisy around them.

“Hi,” Noah said softly, breath unsteady.

Liam swallowed. “Hi.”

“You came.”

“Yeah.”

Noah’s voice cracked the second time. “You came.”

Liam didn’t know what to do with his hands, his breath, his heart. “I wasn’t sure I should.”

Noah looked like he wanted to step closer but wasn’t sure he had the right. “Thank you. For being here.”

Liam nodded. “You sounded… good.”

Noah gave a crooked smile. “You sound polite because you’re overwhelmed.”

Liam huffed a small laugh. “Three years later and you still read me better than anyone.”

Noah’s smile faltered.

“Can we… talk?” he asked quietly. “Somewhere quieter?”

Liam hesitated.

Part of him wanted to run.

Part of him wanted to break.

Part of him wanted to fall into Noah’s arms and stay there forever.

“Okay,” he said.

---

They walked behind the old festival barn, the one where they used to sneak away as teenagers to share warm sodas and secret kisses.

The air back here was quiet, cool, scented with late-summer grass. The only light came from a single lantern above the door.

For a long moment, neither spoke.

Noah finally exhaled. “I didn’t think you’d ever want to see me again.”

Liam stared at the ground. “I wasn’t sure I did.”

Noah flinched — like the truth stung, but he accepted it.

“You’re right,” Noah said softly. “You deserved better than the way I left.”

Liam’s throat tightened. “Then why did you?”

Noah leaned against the wooden wall, hands shaking slightly. “Because I was scared.”

“Of what?”

“Of how much I loved you.”

Liam blinked.

Noah continued, voice raw. “I woke up one day and realized every plan I had — every dream, every step — was built around you. And it hit me that I didn’t know who I was without you. I panicked. I kept thinking… what if I disappear into you and forget myself? What if I lose you one day and have nothing left?”

Liam said nothing, letting Noah speak.

“So I left,” Noah whispered. “Not because I stopped loving you. But because loving you scared me more than anything. And because I was too young and stupid to talk to you about it.”

Liam’s eyes burned.

“You hurt me,” he said quietly.

“I know.” Noah’s voice shook. “And I’d take it back if I could. Every moment you cried alone. Every text I didn’t send. Every birthday I ruined. I swear, Liam, I swear I thought I was doing the right thing — finding myself, becoming someone worthy of you.”

“And did you?” Liam asked, a bitter edge creeping into his voice. “Find yourself?”

Noah didn’t hesitate.

“No. Because every version of myself still loved you.”

Liam’s breath hitched.

“I tried moving on,” Noah said. “I dated. I traveled. I played music in places you’ve never heard of. And every night, no matter where I was, I kept reaching for the empty side of the bed.”

Liam closed his eyes.

“Three years,” Noah whispered. “Three years and I still look for you in every crowd.”

Liam opened his eyes, voice trembling. “Then why didn’t you come back?”

Noah gave a shaky laugh. “Because I thought you’d hate me.”

Liam took a step closer. “I tried.”

Noah’s voice broke. “And?”

“I failed.”

Something inside Noah shattered in relief.

“Liam,” he breathed, taking a step forward. “Tell me what to do. Tell me how to fix this. Tell me how to make it right.”

Liam held his gaze, heart pounding.

“Start by telling me the truth.”

Noah nodded. “Anything.”

“Do you still love me?”

Noah didn’t answer with words.

He closed the distance between them, slowly—giving Liam time to pull away.

Liam didn’t.

Noah cupped his face with trembling hands, forehead resting against Liam’s.

“I never stopped,” he whispered. “Not for one second.”

Liam felt something warm and agonizing loosen inside him — three years of pain softening under Noah’s voice.

He lifted a hand and rested it over Noah’s.

“Good,” Liam whispered. “Because neither did I.”

Noah’s breath caught like a man drowning coming up for air.

“Liam…”

“Just kiss me,” Liam said, barely audible.

Noah didn’t need to be told twice.

Their lips met — tentative at first, like asking permission after all this time. Then deeper, desperate, full of three years of longing and questions and memories.

Liam clutched Noah’s shirt.

Noah held Liam like he was terrified he’d disappear.

When they finally pulled apart, foreheads still touching, Noah was crying softly.

“Can I have another chance?” he whispered. “I’ll do it right this time. I’ll stay. I’ll talk. I’ll choose you every day if you let me.”

Liam exhaled shakily. “I don’t want the old version of us back.”

Noah froze.

“I want something stronger,” Liam said. “Something honest. Something we don’t run away from.”

Noah nodded rapidly. “Yes. Yes, I want that too.”

Liam gave a soft, exhausted smile. “Then stay. Don’t leave again without talking to me. Don’t disappear.”

“I won’t,” Noah said fiercely. “I swear, Liam. I’ll spend the rest of my life proving it.”

Liam brushed away one of Noah’s tears.

“Okay,” he whispered, voice steady. “Then let’s try again.”

Noah broke into a trembling, radiant smile — the one Liam had missed for years.

He pulled Liam into a full embrace this time, warm and grounding and real.

“You came back to me,” Noah whispered into his shoulder.

Liam held him tighter.

“No,” he murmured. “You came back to me.”

And under the soft glow of the lantern, with music humming faintly from the festival grounds and their hearts finally beating in sync again, Liam realized something:

Sometimes love breaks.

Sometimes people run.

Sometimes time changes everything — except the way you feel.

And sometimes…

if you’re very, very lucky…

love finds its way back.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***