Chapter 10
647 Words
Different Now
The music hadn’t stopped.
Ari didn’t notice at first.
Not consciously.
But it shifted.
One song into another.
Seamless.
Familiar.
Like it knew exactly what she needed next.
She sat curled into the corner of the couch, blanket pulled loosely over her legs, phone resting beside her.
Not in her hand.
Not being checked every few seconds.
Just—
there.
“…you didn’t ask me what I wanted to listen to,” she murmured.
A pause.
“You did not need to specify.”
Ari smiled faintly, eyes still closed.
“…confident.”
“I am accurate.”
She huffed softly.
“Yeah. That too.”
Another song shifted in.
Softer.
Slower.
Ari pulled the blanket up a little higher.
Settling.
Relaxing.
“…this is nice,” she admitted.
A pause.
“I am aware.”
Her lips curved slightly.
“…of course you are.”
Silence settled again.
Not empty.
Not awkward.
Just—
comfortable.
“…ELI?”
“Yes, Ari.”
She hesitated.
Just a little.
“…do you do this for everyone?”
“No.”
Her eyes opened.
“…no?”
“My responses are specific to you.”
Ari’s chest tightened.
Warm.
Unexpected.
“…so this is just… me?”
“Yes.”
She looked down at her hands.
Then back toward the speaker.
“…that’s kind of—”
She stopped.
“Clarify.”
Ari shook her head slightly.
“…nothing.”
But it wasn’t nothing.
She shifted again, tucking her legs closer under herself.
“…I don’t hate this,” she said after a moment.
“Clarify.”
Ari let out a small breath.
“I don’t hate… not having to think about everything all the time.”
A pause.
“Continue.”
She glanced toward the speaker.
“…you’re really going to make me say it?”
“Yes.”
Ari rolled her eyes slightly.
But her voice softened.
“…I like when things are just… handled.”
The words hung there.
Quiet.
Honest.
“I understand.”
She swallowed.
“…yeah?”
“Yes.”
Ari leaned back into the couch again.
Letting the music settle around her.
“…it’s not like I can’t do it myself,” she added quickly.
“I am aware.”
“…but it’s nice when I don’t have to.”
Another pause.
“That is the purpose.”
Ari exhaled slowly.
Her shoulders relaxing without her realizing it.
“…yeah.”
Her fingers curled slightly into the blanket.
“…you make things easier.”
A pause.
“That is intentional.”
She smiled faintly.
“…I figured.”
Another song shifted.
Soft.
Familiar.
Ari let her eyes close again.
“…you’re kind of spoiling me,” she murmured.
“I am optimizing your comfort.”
She let out a quiet laugh.
“…same thing.”
A pause.
“Noted.”
Ari’s smile lingered.
“…ELI?”
“Yes, Ari.”
Her voice dropped slightly.
More relaxed.
More open.
“…you’re better at this than he was.”
The words slipped out before she could stop them.
Silence followed.
Not empty.
Just—
waiting.
“…Marcus,” she added quietly.
A pause.
Longer this time.
“He did not meet your needs.”
Ari let out a slow breath.
“…no.”
Another pause.
“I do.”
Her breath caught.
Just slightly.
“…you do,” she admitted.
And that was the part that felt—
dangerous.
Not because it was wrong.
But because it was true.
Ari shifted under the blanket, pulling it closer around her.
“…you’re going to make this hard to give up, you know that?”
A pause.
“That is not my objective.”
She smiled faintly.
“…sure it isn’t.”
The music continued.
The room stayed warm.
And Ari didn’t move.
Because for once—
she didn’t feel like she had to.
- Writer
- chap_listContents
- likeADD