Samantha’s POV
The next morning, I woke up to find Julian’s bed empty. The covers were neatly folded, and his suitcase was untouched. He must have left the room a while ago.
Rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I stretched and got out of bed, pulling on a sweater over my pajamas to keep warm.
As I headed downstairs, I heard voices coming from the kitchen lighthearted chatter mixed with the clinking of plates.
Curious, I peeked in and saw Julian standing by the counter, a mug in hand, chatting with my mother as she flipped pancakes on the griddle.
“Good morning, sweety,” my mother greeted when she spotted me, her face lighting up with a smile.
“Morning, Mom,” I replied groggily, my eyes darting to Julian, who turned to me with his usual confident smirk.
“Good morning, Samantha,” he said,
