A/n: this one is short because i need it to progress the plot. Does that sentence make sense? Iâve been up since 5 Iâm dying.
I canât find the usual divider so just pretend this is purple stars :)
You didnât act on it right away.
That would have been too obvious.
Instead, you stayed in bed a little longer than necessary, staring at the ceiling while your thoughts circled the same point over and over, never quite landing.
What youâd give him next.
You turned onto your side, pressing your face into the pillow like you could smother the thought before it settled too deep.
Eventually, you pushed yourself up.
No music. No footsteps. No movement behind the walls.
You opened your door slowly, half-expecting to find him already in the kitchenâbut the space was empty when you stepped out. The quiet stretched, undisturbed.
Your gaze drifted to the coffee table.
The laptop sat where heâd left it yesterday.
You stared at it longer than you meant to.
This had been part of the routine for a while now. Heâd leave it out. Youâd use it when you wanted. No passwords. No restrictions. Just⊠access.
Freedom, shaped like permission.
You walked over before you could think too hard about it and sat down, pulling the laptop into your lap. It was still faintly warmâlike heâd used it not long ago.
That shouldnât have mattered.
The screen lit softly, familiar and impersonal. Your fingers hovered over the trackpad for a second, hesitatingânot because you didnât know what to do.
You told yourself it was curiosity.
Soft fabric. Clean lines. Something simple enough to pass as normal, but⊠not what youâd been wearing here. Not oversized. Not distant. Not safe in the same way.
Your eyes traced it slowly.
You imagined the weight of it. The way it would sit against your skin instead of hiding it.
You imagined walking into the kitchen wearing it.
Imagined his eyes lifting.
You exhaled sharply and leaned back into the couch.
The thought came quick. Defensive.
This is just something normal. Something Iâd do anyway.
Your fingers curled slightly against the edge of the laptop.
You could close it. You could stand up and walk away.
Nothing would change. That would be easier.
The words sat in the center of the screen, clean and final.
For a second, you just stared at it.
You hadnât rushed. You hadnât panicked.
Slowly, you closed the laptop.
Like the action itself needed to be controlled, contained, kept from spilling into something bigger.
You set it back exactly where it had been.
Like nothing had happened.
Your hands lingered on the lid for a second longer than necessary before you pulled away.
The house was still quiet.
But it didnât feel the same anymore.
You flinched slightly at the voice behind you.
Hollis stood in the doorway to the kitchen, watching youânot sharply, not suspiciously. Just⊠aware.
Your heart kicked once in your chest before settling.
His gaze flicked briefly to the laptop.
Closed. Where it always was.
âYouâve been up long?â
You shook your head. âNot really.â
He nodded, stepping further into the room. âCoffee?â
You moved into the kitchen with him, the rhythm picking up where yesterday left off like it had never paused. Cabinets opened. Mugs set down. The quiet clink of something familiar.
You felt it sitting under your skin.
You leaned against the counter beside him, not touching, not distant. The same careful balance youâd both fallen into.
Your fingers wrapped around the warm ceramic.
âI ordered something,â you said.
The words came out before you could stop them.
His hand stilled slightly where it rested against the counter.
You nodded, staring down into your mug. âThis morning.â
No teasing. No questions. No shift in tone.
Sorry no tag list bc Iâm so lazy rn itâs crazy
