Isabelle’s POV
After the open day ended and the last of the parents cleared the courtyard, I sat alone in the front passenger seat of my car, keys idle in the ignition, staring at the school gate Nathan had just disappeared behind.
He was inside now—safe, joyful, chatting away with his friends, his small hands still sticky from the science station where they’d made slime in little plastic tubs.
He hadn’t let go of Damion’s hand for the better part of an hour.
And Damion… he hadn’t let go either.
There had been no tension in his face. No performance in his smile. Just a softness I didn’t know he still carried. A kind of quiet reverence, as though being near Nathan was something sacred.
It was strange to see them together.
Stranger still… to realize I wasn’t afraid.
Not in that momen
