Val was standing in the living room, a mug warming her hands, as the light came through the windows pale and wintry, listening to the distant hum of traffic far below.
She noticed her belongings had taken up a large amount of the space in Elliot's apartment.
Her scarf draped over the back of the chair. Her hair and beauty products in the bathroom. The cardigan she'd left on the arm of the sofa. Her notebook on the coffee table. Her phone charger plugged in next to his bed.
Her presence was everywhere.
More, she realised, than in her own apartment.
The thought didn't alarm her. It didn't even surprise her. It simply… landed.
She turned slowly, taking it in with fresh eyes. Elliot's space had never felt off limits to her, but now it no longer felt like she was a guest either. It felt shared. Adjusted. Lived in by two people who had learned the shape of each other's days.
Elliot glanced up from his laptop. "What are you thinking about?"
She smiled faintly. "Nothing."
He nodded, accepting that without pressure, and turned back to his screen.
But the thought stayed with her.
Later that morning, Noah arrived, bringing cold air and noise with him in equal measure. He set his bag down, took off his jacket, and set to work next to Elliot.
They stopped for a break a couple of hours later.
"How's Holly?" Val asked him as he made a coffee.
"Good, really good."
Val raised an eyebrow. "But?"
Noah laughed. "No buts, we're moving in together. We're looking for something a bit bigger than her place, and nearer than mine to the hospital."
Val's face lit up. "That's amazing."
Elliot blinked. "Already?"
"It kind of makes sense," Noah said. "We're basically living out of each other's places anyway."
Val smiled, genuinely pleased for them.
"I'm happy for you."
"Thanks," Noah said.
Elliot nodded slowly. "Me too."
"Finding a decent place these days is almost impossible. The good places are too expensive or too far. The ones in our budget near the hospital are all tiny or in a really bad neighbourhood."
Val's mind clicked into motion before she'd fully filtered the thought.
"You know," she said casually, "you could rent my apartment."
Both men turned to her.
Elliot froze.
Noah blinked. "Your apartment?"
"Yeah," she said. "It's close to the hospital. It's a decent size. And I'm here all the time."
Elliot's chest tightened.
Noah's expression shifted into thoughtful surprise. "That's… actually not a bad idea."
"It would be temporary," Val added quickly. "Until you find somewhere else if you want. Or longer. Whatever works."
Noah nodded slowly. "That might actually be perfect."
Elliot said nothing.
He felt the words hit him in stages.
"Here all the time"
"Temporary."
"Whatever works."
They weren't wrong. None of it was wrong. But something in him recoiled anyway, sharp and sudden.
Val noticed.
She glanced at him, her smile fading just a fraction. "We don't have to decide anything now," she said lightly. "Just a thought."
Noah, sensing the shift, cleared his throat. "I'm going to head to the office," he said. "Think on it. No pressure."
When the door closed behind him, the apartment felt quieter than it had a moment before.
Val turned toward Elliot fully. "Hey."
He didn't look at her right away.
"That surprised you," she said gently.
"Yes," he admitted.
She nodded. "I'm sorry, I didn't think. I should have asked you first what you think about me living here longer term."
He swallowed. "I just wasn't... expecting it."
She waited.
"You don't want me to live here," she said, not accusing, just trying to understand.
His head snapped up. "No. That's not..."
She took a small step back instinctively, the space between them widening just enough to hurt.
"I might've assumed too much," she said quietly. "I know I've stayed here a lot. I should have..."
"Val," he said, immediately, not harshly. "Please don't do that."
"Do what?"
"Decide I don't want something because I didn't say the right thing fast enough."
She held his gaze, uncertainty flickering there now.
He took a breath, grounding himself. "I like that you're here," he said carefully. "I like… how things are. I just didn't realise we were making it permanent."
Her shoulders relaxed slightly. "I wasn't trying to force anything."
"I know."
Silence stretched between them, delicate, but not breaking.
"It made me realise something," he continued. "I'm still adjusting to the idea that I'm sharing… my home with someone else. It's not just a place I retreat to."
She considered that. "That makes sense."
"And when you said you barely use your apartment anymore," he added, quieter, "it scared me. Not because I don't want you here. But because I don't want you to give something up for me."
Her expression softened.
"I wouldn't be giving it up," she said. "I'd be choosing something else."
He nodded slowly.
"I just needed time," he admitted. "To let my brain catch up with my heart."
She smiled at that, small and warm. "That's one of the loveliest things you've ever said to me."
He huffed a quiet laugh, embarrassed. "I'm just being honest."
"You're always honest, but that was really sweet," she told him.
She stepped closer again, careful, giving him the chance to pull away if he needed to. He didn't.
"For what it's worth," she said softly, "when I said I barely use my apartment, I didn't mean it like I was giving up something. I just… realised home isn't always a place you pay rent for."
He absorbed that.
"What is it then?" he asked.
She thought for a moment. "Where you feel known. Where you don't have to explain why you need quiet. Or space. Or closeness."
He nodded, his throat feeling tight.
"That's enlightening," he said.
They stood there a moment longer, the misunderstanding loosening into something gentler, something sturdier.
When Noah returned the following morning, Elliot surprised himself.
"You should talk to Val about the apartment," he said evenly. "If it works for you."
Val looked at him and smiled.
"That's great."
Elliot nodded. "Yes. I just needed a minute to process… to think ahead."
Noah smiled. "Fair."
After he left, Val slipped her hand around Elliot's.
"You okay?"
"Yes," he said. "I just need things to not happen all at once."
"We're very good at going slowly."
He smiled at that.
That evening, as they cooked together, moving easily around each other, Elliot realised something else.
He wasn't afraid of her staying.
He was afraid of how much it mattered.
And that, he was beginning to understand, wasn't a reason to pull away.
It was a reason to be honest. To stay.
They ate together at the table, talked about nothing and everything, the apartment warm with shared presence.
Later, when Val leaned her head against his shoulder, he rested his cheek lightly against her hair.
No declarations. No promises.
Just the quiet certainty of two people choosing to be in the same place together.
And for now, that was more than enough.