Truth
Avery's Point of View
The room calmed the way the sea settles after a storm, not silent exactly, only full of smaller sounds that do not demand, the whisper of the air conditioner, the faraway bass of a party that had forgotten our names, the soft rasp of fabric when I pulled the blanket up to my waist even though the air was warm.
Elliot lay on his side facing me with one hand open on the mattress, not touching, and the space between us felt like a bridge that finally learned where to land.
I watched his chest rise and fall until I could match my breathing to his, then I turned on my back and let the ceiling take the weight of the words I had been saving.
"I came back for you," I said, voice steady because I wanted the truth to stand on its own feet.
"I flew home because I t
