Lila’s POV
I was here again. The clearing. The last place I wanted to be.
The familiar hush of the woods settled around me, heavy and pulsing like a heartbeat. Crickets chirped in rhythmic intervals, night owls called out from hidden branches, and somewhere deeper in the trees, small feet scurried through fallen leaves. The clearing thrummed with life, and yet I felt utterly alone.
Of course I did.
I didn’t want to see him. Not here, not now. I wasn’t ready—not after everything.
But dreams rarely listened to logic.
The sharp crack of a branch broke through the quiet, followed by the heavy crunch of footsteps. I stood quickly, my heart punching against my ribcage as I scanned the shadows.
And then he stepped through.
Tobi.
He stood at the edge of the trees like some carved statue—t
