Chapter 6: The Invitation She Almost Refused
399 Words
Elara stared at the invitation longer than necessary.
It wasn’t fancy. Just a simple message from her coworker, Maya, scribbled on a festive card that smelled faintly of cinnamon.
Small holiday gathering. Nothing big. You should come.
She almost laughed.
Holiday gatherings were exactly how things went wrong. Spilled drinks. Awkward conversations. That hollow feeling of watching everyone else belong while she hovered at the edges.
Her fingers tightened around the card.
She was about to throw it away when her phone buzzed.
Rowan: Are you busy tonight?
Her heart skipped. Traitorous. Predictable.
She hesitated, then typed back.
Elara: I was invited somewhere. I’m probably not going.
Three dots appeared. Disappeared. Then—
Rowan: If you want, I can walk you there. No pressure.
No pressure.
That was the thing about Rowan. He never pushed. Never tried to fix her. He simply… stayed close.
An hour later, Elara stood outside the warmly lit apartment where the gathering was happening, coat zipped to her chin.
“This is a bad idea,” she murmured.
Rowan smiled softly beside her. “Then we’ll leave early.”
Inside, laughter spilled easily. Music played low. A tree glittered in the corner, ornaments catching the light. Elara braced herself.
Nothing went wrong.
No awkward silences. No sharp comments. No sudden sense of being out of place. Someone handed her a mug of cider. Another asked her about work. Time passed without incident.
She realized—slowly, cautiously—that she was enjoying herself.
Across the room, Rowan watched her like this mattered.
Like she mattered.
When the host suggested a group photo, Elara almost stepped back on instinct. Rowan’s hand brushed hers, grounding.
“Stay,” he murmured.
The flash went off.
For once, she didn’t feel like she didn’t belong in the picture.
Later, outside in the cold, Elara exhaled shakily. “Nothing bad happened.”
Rowan’s smile was small, but his eyes were intense. “You deserved a night like that.”
The words settled deep in her chest.
As they stood beneath the glowing streetlights, Elara felt it again—that quiet warmth, steady and reassuring.
She didn’t know how long it would last.
But for the first time in her life, she wasn’t rushing to escape the holidays.
She was standing in them.
And somewhere, unseen, the magic leaned closer-watching, waiting, and counting how many times she chose to stay.
- Writer
