The words left my mouth before I could second-guess them.
"I'm going to try something," I told Belle.
She paused mid-motion, a fork hovering above the bowl between us. Even without seeing her eyes, I could feel her attention sharpen, like a blade being gently unsheathed. Her head tilted slightly toward me, the blindfold catching the warm light of the room.
"…Try something?" she echoed, calm but curious.
I nodded, then realized how pointless the gesture was and let out a quiet breath instead. My fingers tightened around the edge of the blanket. My heartbeat felt louder than it should have.
"It's… complicated," I said. "And a little insane. But I wouldn't suggest it if I didn't think it could work."
That earned me a soft hum of consideration. Belle never rushed decisions. She leaned back slightly, resting one hand on the bed, the other still loosely holding her fork.
