Reclaiming the seat next to her wasn’t hard.
It wasn’t about begging or making polite conversation. It didn’t need charm or excuses. All it took was standing still, letting the silence do the talking, and letting my presence speak for itself.
I found him easily—the boy sitting beside Elena’s empty chair. A skinny kid with oversized glasses and a math workbook clutched like a lifeline. He looked like the kind of person who thought numbers could protect him from the world. The type who never caused trouble and was terrified of anyone who did.
Perfect.
I walked up slowly, letting the noise of the classroom die behind me with each step. He didn’t notice me at first. He was too focused on the scribbles in his notebook. But he felt me. People like him always do. That low hum of instinct that
