The day passed in fragments — words and faces blurring together, time folding in on itself until the only thing that mattered was after school.
Velithra waited behind the gym, where the noise of the day couldn't reach. The air smelled faintly of wet asphalt and something green, alive. She traced small circles into the dirt with the toe of her shoe, her heart beating too fast.
Then Kai appeared.
He came from the far end of the yard, hands shoved deep into his pockets, his dark hair falling into his eyes. Even from a distance, he looked untouchable — calm, controlled — but when he got close enough, Velithra saw the cracks in the mask. His shoulders tense. His breathing shallow.
"You came," he said softly.
"You asked me to."
He gave a small nod, eyes shifting toward the ground. "Right."
For a moment, neither of them spoke. The sound of wind through the trees filled the space between them.
Finally, Velithra broke the silence."You said there was something you needed to tell me."
Kai hesitated, his jaw tightening."I did. I just don't know how much of it you'll want to hear."
"Let me decide that," she said quietly.
He looked at her then — really looked — as if trying to see how much truth she could handle. Whatever he found there must've been enough, because his voice softened.
"Last night," he began, "I saw her again."
Velithra's chest tightened. "The person you lost?"
He nodded. "Yeah. In a dream. But it didn't feel like one."
Her voice dropped to a whisper. "What happened?"
He exhaled, running a hand through his hair."I thought I was helping her. Back then. I thought I could fix everything if I just… stayed. But she died because I didn't listen."
Velithra's breath caught. "Kai—"
"She told me not to let it happen again," he continued, voice breaking just slightly. "And now I can't stop thinking about it. About you."
Her heart stumbled. "Me?"
He met her gaze then, and it felt like the air around them stilled."I don't want you anywhere near what follows me. But at the same time…" His throat worked. "I don't know if I can stay away."
Velithra swallowed, the weight of his words pressing down on her."You think I'm scared of your past," she said quietly. "But what scares me is how much I already care, even without knowing everything."
For the first time, Kai looked startled — not because of her words, but because of how honest they were.
He stepped closer, close enough that she could see the faint tremor in his hand as he reached up but stopped short of touching her."I don't deserve that," he said.
"Maybe not," she whispered, "but you still have it."
The silence that followed was thick, trembling, alive.
Kai dropped his gaze, fighting something inside him.When he finally spoke, it was soft — a plea, a confession, and a warning all at once.
"If I hurt you," he said, "it won't be because I want to. It'll be because I don't know how to stop what's already in motion."
Velithra didn't back away. "Then let me stand beside you before it does."
Their eyes met — a moment stretched thin between danger and tenderness.
And though neither moved, it felt like the entire world had tilted just slightly in their direction.