Knox:
The house was finally quiet.
Not silent—never that, not with 4 girls spread across every mattress, couch, and corner—but quiet in that soft, heavy way that came when the last of the whispers faded and even the night stopped moving.
I stood in the doorway to our room, watching Viv. She was brushing her hair out, slow strokes, eyes half-closed. The soft lamp beside the bed glowed against her skin, casting her in gold and warm shadows.
She looked like peace. Like the first inhale after surviving a war.
And f**k if I didn’t want to fall to my knees right there and thank the universe for giving her to me.
Her eyes flicked to mine in the mirror. “You just gonna stand there and stare, tough guy?”
I smirked and stepped inside, closing the door behind me. “Maybe.”
The room was small.
