დ Rosalie დ
I hadn’t meant to stay. That was the lie I told myself after my second drink. The truth was that once Declan sat beside me and didn’t push too hard, leaving had stopped feeling simple. The pressure inside me had eased just enough to let other things in. Tiredness. Awareness. Him. The bar got louder as the night wore on, but I barely heard any of it anymore. My attention kept catching on Declan instead. He listened. He never rushed to fill the silence. He made space for what I said without trying to soften it. That unsettled me more than I wanted to admit. I wrapped both hands around my glass.
“I haven’t talked about any of this with anyone,” I admitted. Declan looked at me, his expression unreadable in the low light.
“I know,” he said, and for some reason, that irritated m
