Chapter 10
534 Words
Ethan’s POV
Lena’s pillow hit my shoulder before I had a chance to dodge. I let it land, because the truth was, I didn’t really want to stop her from throwing it. It felt… normal. Us.
She disappeared down the hall before I could think of something clever to say back. Not that it mattered. Half our conversations were just banter covering something we didn’t know how to say out loud.
I looked at Mateo, still asleep, tiny fingers curled like he was holding onto a dream. And maybe he was. I hoped it was a good one.
The house felt different when she wasn’t in it. Quieter. But not in a peaceful way, in a kind of hollow way. Mateo filled part of that space, sure. But Lena filled the rest.
When she came back into the room, she’d changed into leggings and one of those oversized sweatshirts that always made her look both exhausted and unfairly beautiful.
“Going anywhere?” I asked, mostly so I wouldn’t say something stupid like I missed you today.
She raised an eyebrow. “I live here, remember?”
I nodded and pretended to focus on folding the blanket on the couch. “Just looked like you were gearing up to escape.”
She hesitated. “Nolan asked me to get tacos. Just friendly intern stuff.”
Something twisted in my gut. It wasn’t even jealousy, not exactly. It was more like… the realization that I was suddenly very aware of every choice I hadn’t made yet.
“Sounds fun.”
She gave me a look. “You don’t get to be weird about this.”
“I’m not being weird.”
“You’re being weird, Ethan.”
I dropped the blanket. “I just don’t want you to get hurt.”
“By tacos?”
“By him.”
She froze.
I hadn’t meant to say it. Not like that. But now it was out there, and she was looking at me like she wanted to see what I meant underneath the words.
“I’m a big girl,” she said finally. “I can handle tacos. And interns. And… whatever this is.”
I nodded, but it felt heavy. Like every second that passed was a choice I didn’t know how to make fast enough.
She grabbed her keys off the hook and paused by the door.
“I’ll be back before Mateo’s next bottle.”
I nodded again. “Drive safe.”
She left, and the door clicked shut behind her. The silence stretched.
Mateo stirred. I walked over and tucked the edge of the blanket around him a little tighter, then grabbed my phone.
Logan:
You ever watch someone leave and realize you maybe should’ve said something before they walked out?
Logan:
So… like every third day of my life. What happened?
I didn’t know how to explain it. How Lena walking out that door felt less like a girl going to get tacos and more like a moment I might not get back.
I didn’t reply.
Instead, I sat back down beside Mateo and watched the door like it might open sooner than I thought. Like she might change her mind.
- Writer
