Noel
I didn’t think much when I said yes. It was a simple response, one that I thought wouldn't mean much, but as soon as the word left my lips, the air in the room shifted. Their faces darkened, their jaws clenched, and without another word, they turned their backs on me and went to bed, leaving me standing there in the suffocating silence of my own regret. I waited—maybe one of them would turn back, say something, anything, even if it was just to curse me out for whatever invisible line I had crossed. But no. The room remained still, except for the occasional rustling of sheets as they forced themselves into sleep, or at least pretended to. My chest tightened, a strange mix of frustration and guilt settling in, but I didn’t let it show.
If they want to be mad, let them be mad. I wouldn
