Chapter 41
The quiet hum of the air conditioner was the only sound filling the stillness of Cole’s classroom. The late afternoon sun filtered softly through the partially closed blinds, casting a gentle, dappled light across the rows of empty desks and the worn hardwood floor. Dust motes floated lazily in the golden rays, momentarily suspended in the calm. The faint scratch of Cole’s pen on a stack of papers was the only other noise.
Lena sat near the window, methodically sorting through a pile of essays and quizzes. Her fingers trembled slightly as she stacked the papers, but she fought to keep her expression neutral. The tension between her and Cole was like an invisible barrier, thick and suffocating, but both of them seemed to pretend it didn’t exist. She forced herself to focus on t
