Aria.
For a moment, Kai just looked at me, his chest rising and falling fast. Then he sighed, shoulders sagging with exhaustion. Under the light of my lamp, I noticed a bruise forming along the corner of his mouth. My anger wavered, confusion slipping through.
I crossed my arms tightly over my chest. “Five minutes,” I said finally, my voice sharp.
Kai’s shoulders relaxed just slightly, his jaw unclenching as he nodded. Carefully, he swung the rest of the way inside, his feet hitting the floor softly.
Now, we were face to face, the silence stretching heavy between us.
Kai stood there in my room, his shoulders still tense, his expression caught between worry and exhaustion. He looked at me like he was carrying the weight of the world, but I couldn’t find it in myself to care. Not after
