Mio's POV
The sound of my own heartbeat was louder than the rain outside.
I didn't remember standing, didn't remember moving — only the feeling of my fingers curling around Claude's wrist as I pulled him toward the bedroom.
He followed without resistance, his usual teasing smirk replaced by something softer, something that made my chest tighten. His footsteps matched mine in silence, yet every step echoed like thunder in the still air between us.
When the door clicked shut behind us, it was as if the entire world dissolved.
There was only Claude.
And the unbearable gravity between us.
He tried to speak — of course he did — but I silenced him with my lips before a word could escape. The kiss wasn't gentle this time. It was all the frustration, longing, and love I'd kept buried since the accident poured into one desperate act. My hands framed his face, my breath tangled with his, and the world tilted.
