*Chapter 9: Six Months Later*
310 Words
The knock never came.
Six months.
Adrian had his own apartment now. 2nd floor, downtown. Nothing fancy. One bed, a couch, a window that looked out over the parking lot.
He didn’t go back to the house.
Ethan didn’t call.
Lily texted once: *I’m okay. Please don’t reply.*
He didn’t.
1am was just 1am now. He’d roll over, check his phone, put it down.
---
Thursday. He was at the grocery store when he saw her.
Lily.
Cart half full. Hair shorter. No wedding ring.
She froze when she saw him.
“Hey,” she said.
“Hey.”
An awkward pause. People moving around them.
“You look good,” she said quickly. “The apartment good?”
“Yeah. It’s quiet.”
She nodded. “Mia’s place is... loud. In a good way.”
Another pause.
“I’m sorry,” she said, quieter. “For all of it. For dragging you into it.”
Adrian shook his head. “We both did it.”
“Ethan?”
“Moved to Florida. Said he needed sun.” Adrian tried to smile. “Didn’t ask about me.”
Lily looked down at her cart. “I’m seeing someone. Nothing serious. Just... coffee. Dinners.”
“That’s good.”
“Are you?”
“No.”
She nodded like she expected that.
“Adrian, I—”
Her phone buzzed. She glanced at it.
“I should go,” she said. “It was good seeing you.”
“Yeah. You too.”
She walked away. Didn’t look back.
---
That night at 1:03am, Adrian was awake.
No knock.
No text.
Just the hum of the fridge.
He sat up. Stared at the door.
Then he laid back down.
Some lines, once you cross them, you don’t get to uncross.
But you can stop crossing them again.
He closed his eyes.
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