Howard.
"Seems like you're in trouble," Alex's playful tease met my ears. His words, though lighthearted, resonated with a deeper truth.
I spared a quick glance at the entrance, contemplating whether to remain outside with Alex or venture further into the house to meet Nora. The tension that had hung between us, like a cloud ready to burst, weighed on my mind.
A part of me wanted to feign irrelevance, to pretend that her urgency didn't affect me. But beneath that facade, a curiosity and a tangle of emotions threatened to unravel my carefully crafted walls.
As Alex's gaze met mine, I maintained a neutral expression, careful not to betray any hint of the internal struggle I was experiencing. His presence offered a brief reprieve, a reminder of the friendship we shared. Yet, the pull o
