~Antonio
Our eyes locked, and the moment stretched unnaturally long. Her brown orbs flickered with a mix of emotions I couldn’t quite place—surprise, fear, and something else that felt like recognition. My chest tightened, and I murmured under my breath, “What now?”
She didn’t respond, not with words. Her lips parted slightly, but nothing came out. The air between us felt charged, a magnetic pull neither of us dared to break.
A soft cough shattered the moment, and we both flinched. Turning, I saw my mother, Daphne, standing a few feet away, her arms folded across her chest.
“Antonio,” she said in her familiar authoritative tone, a brow raised as if she’d caught us doing something we shouldn’t.
I stood, brushing invisible dust from my pants as Tiara scrambled to gather the last
