(Aria)
The house stayed loud long after Alice and her friends finally stumbled out the door, leaving behind a mess of perfume, laughter, and insults that still clung to the walls like smoke.
I thought relief would come once the door shut. It didn’t.
The silence that followed was somehow worse.
I stood in the hallway, arms wrapped around myself, staring at the faint imprint their presence left behind. Their voices still rang in my ears—
Romano
Dead family
Poor orphan
How did you even survive?
The words wormed under my skin no matter how hard I tried to push them out.
I didn’t realize I was shaking until a warm hand closed over my forearm—firm, steady, grounding.
“Aria.”
Vincenzo’s voice was low, the kind that didn’t echo… the kind that settled.
I turned slightly, meeting his ey
