Sophia
I almost canceled twice before I made myself get in the car, some old, self-protective instinct whispering that maybe it was safer to let the distance sit a little longer, to see if it held. Mia caught me hovering by the door with my keys in hand and gave me a look that settled it for me.
"You're going," she said. "You've been miserable all week pretending you weren't. Go."
He opened the door before I even knocked, like he'd been watching for my headlights, and something in his face when he saw me standing there, still in my work clothes, still carrying the residue of a long, uncertain day, made the last of my guardedness c***k just slightly.
"Hi," he said, quiet, careful, like he wasn't sure yet how much ground he'd actually earned back since the corridor.
"Hi." I stepped insi
