Sonia’s POV
The drive back to the Lim’s mansion was quieter than the trip that had taken us there.
No one said it, but everyone could feel it, that shift in air, that hollow stillness that comes after something unspoken. The laughter from the vacation seemed to have been left behind with the sea breeze. In its place was a silence so fragile that even the hum of the car engine felt too loud.
I sat by the window, watching the road blur past, trees, fields, the pale stretch of sky folding into dusk. I could feel Alexander’s presence in the seat across from me. He wasn’t looking at me, and I wasn’t looking at him, but awareness of him filled every breath I took.
Once, I would’ve tried to break the silence. I would’ve said something meaningless just to make him talk, just to feel him near.
