Jules
The moment the words left my mouth, I expected… something. A flicker of surprise, a frown, or maybe even a question, anything at all. But Ryan didn’t react. Not even a twitch.
He just stood there with his arms folded tight over his chest, his jaw set like he was fighting with someone, or something, eyes pointed somewhere past me like he was bracing for impact. Like I hadn’t spoken at all.
The silence stretched so long it actually hurt. At first, I waited, giving him the benefit of the doubt. Then another beat passed, then another… and irritation started burning beneath my skin.
By the time two full minutes crawled by, the anger was a living thing in my throat.
“So what? You’d rather just not see me at all?” I snapped, teeth clenched, fingers curling into fists at my sides.
Ryan
