"Not all intimacy is loud."
They didn't talk after that.
Eli shifted to get more comfortable, his back against the wall, one arm around Silver while she settled against his chest. Her bed wasn't really made for two people but they made it work. His legs stretched out, crossed at the ankles. Her knees bent, tucked close to his side.
The position should have been awkward. It wasn't.
Silver listened to his heartbeat. Steady and strong. A rhythm that matched her own breathing as it gradually slowed from the panicked gasps of earlier.
Outside, the dorm was settling into its nighttime routine. Doors opening and closing. Laughter from down the hall. Someone's music playing too loud before someone else yelled at them to turn it down. Normal college sounds that felt distant and unimportant.
"You're still tense," Eli said quietly.
"I know. I'm trying to relax."
