The room was silent.
Not the kind of silence that soothes.
No, this was the kind that screamed.
Rory stood there, chest rising and falling like she’d just run full speed through a minefield which, emotionally, she kind of had.
TJ broke first.
He didn’t speak. Just ran a hand down his face, turned on his heel, and walked out without a word.
Door open. No slamming. Just absence.
Jace?
He stayed.
He stood there, breathing through his nose like if he let go of control for even a second, he’d detonate.
His eyes didn’t leave her.
"You say you’re not a prize," he said, voice low. Controlled. Dangerous.
"And yet I’ve never fought harder to win anything in my entire goddamn life."
Rory swallowed.
"Then maybe," she whispered, "you’re not fighting for the right thing."
A beat.
Two.
T
