Isla stood where she was, arms folded again, the ghost of her earlier laugh fading into a sigh. The sugar smell from the cupcakes lingered, sweet and heavy, like even the air didn't know how to move on.
She swallowed, eyes still on the counter. "What are they saying about Cael?"
That earned a delighted hum from Callie. "Ah, you're ready for heartbreak." She scrolled with a little too much enthusiasm. "Prepare yourself."
A second later, she turned the phone around — and Isla's stomach dropped all over again.
It was a video this time. A thumbnail of her and Cael caught mid-spin, both laughing, his hand steady at her waist. Someone had slowed the footage to half-speed and layered a soft instrumental track over it — strings swelling like a movie trailer for a romance she definitely hadn't signed off on.
The caption read:
Before the kiss... another prince?
"Oh, for the love of—" Isla groaned, grabbing the nearest cupcake and biting into it like it had personally wronged her.
"That's one way to cope," Callie said cheerfully. "You're trending for your posture, by the way."
Isla blinked. "My what?"
"Posture. Apparently you 'radiate chemistry.'"
Isla lowered the cupcake, staring at her. "You have got to be kidding me."
"I wish I were." Callie's grin widened. "They're shipping you, Reed. There's a poll and everything."
"A poll?"
"Oh yes," Callie said, scrolling with mock solemnity. "Team Dorian. Team Cael. Team Mystery Man." She paused for effect. "And, of course, Team CupcakeChaos."
Isla stared at her, then snorted. "You're making that up."
Callie looked up, smirking. "Wish I was. Personally, I'm voting for the last one."
"Unbelievable." Isla balled up a napkin and lobbed it across the counter.
It hit Callie square on the shoulder.
"You find my misery way too entertaining."
"Someone has to," Callie shot back, laughing — the sound bubbling through the room and easing something in the air that had been too tight for too long.
The laughter lingered a little longer than either of them expected — warm, easy, filling the corners of the kitchen. Then, as it faded, the silence that followed wasn't uncomfortable. It just... settled.
Callie leaned back into the couch, still smiling faintly, her phone loose in her hand. After a moment, the grin eased, replaced by something quieter. She set the phone aside and glanced over.
"Hey," she said softly. "You okay?"
Isla let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. She moved to one of the stools by the breakfast bar and sat, her hands resting on her knees.
"Yeah," she said after a pause. "I just—" She hesitated, searching for the right words. "It's weird seeing moments that felt... private turned into stories I don't recognize."
Callie nodded slowly, her tone matching the hush that had crept into the room. "It's not fair."
"It's not even accurate," Isla said, forcing a small, uneven laugh. "Cael was just being kind. Tyler was—" She stopped, the words catching before she could finish. Her fingers tightened slightly on the fabric of her apron. "Tyler was hurt. That's all it was."
For a while, neither of them spoke. The quiet wasn't heavy, exactly — it just hung there, familiar and fragile. The kind of stillness that made every small sound feel louder than it was.
Callie eventually stood, stretching a little, then crossed to the counter where the remaining cupcakes cooled in a neat row. She picked one up, peeled back the paper, and took a bite.
"Well," she said around a mouthful of frosting, "you know what this means."
Isla looked up, eyebrows raised. "What?"
"You can't step outside without a plot twist now."
That pulled a dry laugh out of Isla before she could stop it. "Great. Just what I needed."
She leaned her elbows on her knees, letting her head drop forward for a moment. "I just wanted a quiet Sunday."
Callie snorted. "You're in the wrong fairytale for that, Reed."
That earned another small smile — fleeting, but real.
Isla's gaze drifted toward the window. Sunlight spilled over the curtain edge, glancing off the counter, soft and golden. Outside, the city went on — people walking, cars passing, the world still moving fast without her permission.
Inside, though, for a little while longer, everything stayed still.