Lily did not sleep normally after that.
Which honestly felt like Noah’s fault.
Because every single time she closed her eyes—
her brain replayed the same message.
Yeah.
One word.
One terrifyingly honest word.
And somehow—
that tiny little response had completely rearranged her emotional stability.
By midnight, Lily had read the conversation enough times to qualify as concerning behavior.
By 1 AM—
she had officially accepted that she was in trouble.
Real trouble.
Because Noah carter cared about her.
Openly now.
And worse?
She cared back.
A lot.
Which meant her life was effectively over.
—
The next morning, Lily walked into school feeling deeply suspicious of her own heartbeat.
Emily noticed immediately.
“Oh no,” she whispered dramatically. “You have the face again.”
“
