Adrian's glow flickers like a candle caught in wind, but his presence feels heavier, more grounded. He's not just an apparition anymore; he casts a shadow. His breath warms the air between us.
But the room around him is wrong.
Objects lean toward him—curtains shifting without a breeze, dust swirling in silent swells, the cracked-glass window bending light toward his form. It's as if everything in my apartment recognizes him more than the world should.
"Adrian," I whisper, "the field… is it stabilizing you?"
He hesitates, eyes dark with uncertainty.
"It's stabilizing something."
Before I can respond, a sharp bang rattles the door.
I startle. Adrian stiffens.
Another bang—this time louder.
"Lyra!" a voice calls. "It's Marla—open the damn door or I'm kicking it down!"
My stomach drops. I haven't answered her in days.
Adrian's figure flickers.
"Don't let her see me."
"Why?"
"Because I exist here through you. The field reacts to your emotions… not hers. If she walks in—"He breaks off, jaw tense."I don't know what the resonance will do."
The pounding intensifies."Lyra! Are you hurt? I'm calling the police if you don't answer!"
I glance at Adrian. "I have to open it."
He nods—slowly, reluctantly.
I crack the door open.
Marla storms in like a panicked thunderbolt—hair messy, scarf crooked, eyes wide with fury and fear."Lyra, what the hell is happening? Your neighbors heard noises, glass shattering, and no one's seen you in days!"
Her gaze sweeps across the room—and then she freezes.
Not at Adrian. She can't see him.
She's staring at the cracks in the window, glowing faintly with that same impossible blue light.
"Lyra…" she says slowly. "Why is your window… lit?"
I force a laugh."It's a—projection. For the installation piece."
She gives me a look that says she absolutely does not believe this.
"You need sleep," Marla snaps. "And food. And sunlight. And maybe a week away from all this creepy—whatever the hell you're doing in here."
Behind her, Adrian watches, expression unreadable.
Marla grabs my shoulders. "Come with me. Right now. You're scaring me."
The resonance stirs.
It's subtle at first—a quiet hum beneath my skin.
Then stronger.
Adrian's glow responds to it, as though my rising panic is feeding him.
Marla's grip tightens. "Lyra. Look at me."
But all I can feel is the field expanding—through the walls, the air, the floorboards—my fear making the sound sharpen, swell.
Adrian steps forward.
"Lyra… breathe."
But I can't.Marla's voice mixes with Adrian's.The hum becomes a living pulse.
The window explodes.
Marla screams.I drop to the floor.Adrian leaps forward—his body passing through falling shards of glass as though they're mist.
But the shards don't fall.
They hang in the air—hundreds of them—suspended, shimmering, vibrating in slow circles around us.
Marla backs into the wall, horrified. "What—Lyra—what is—"
Adrian's voice cuts through the ringing silence.
"You have to choose."
I turn to him, heart hammering. "Choose what?!"
"Whether to calm the field—or unleash it."
The suspended glass rotates faster, chiming softly as they collide.Outside, a car alarm goes off.The streetlights flicker from blue to white to darkness.
The city is reacting.
Marla's voice breaks. "Lyra—please—make it stop—"
The resonance inside me tightens like a coil, reacting to her fear, my fear, everything tangled and rising. Adrian steps closer, cupping my face in his glowing hands.
For the first time, I feel real warmth.Real shape.Real touch.
"Lyra," Adrian murmurs, "listen to me. I'm here. I'm with you. Just focus on me."
Tears blur my vision. "I don't know how."
"Yes you do."
He presses his forehead to mine.The resonance flares—then softens under his touch, like a wild creature settling.
"Lyra!" Marla gasps, covering her face as the glass settles slowly to the floor, piece by piece, landing with gentle, crystalline taps.
The lights outside steady.The hum recedes.The field closes in.
My body goes limp, and Adrian catches me as though he were solid flesh.
Marla doesn't see him holding me—only sees me collapsing forward.She rushes, grabbing my shoulders. "Lyra! LYRA—talk to me!"
Adrian's voice is soft in my ear.
"You saved them."
My breath shakes. "I didn't… I didn't mean for any of this."
"You're learning."His fingers brush my cheek."But you're not controlling it yet."
Marla helps me to the couch."Lyra," she whispers, trembling, "what did you do?"
I look at her, throat tight.I can't explain. Not without sounding insane.
"I'm sorry," I whisper.
Adrian kneels beside me, unseen by her, eyes dark with worry.
"The more people around you, the more the field reacts. Your emotions are amplifiers."
I meet his gaze, feeling the truth settle like cold metal in my stomach.
"Adrian… I think I'm dangerous."
He leans in, his glow warming my skin.
"Not dangerous."A soft smile touches his lips."Powerful."
"Then what happens when I lose control again?"
His expression shifts—sorrow, love, fear.
"Then I'll pull you back."A pause."Even if it destroys me."
My breath catches. "Don't say that."
Marla glances between me and the empty space where Adrian kneels, confused and scared. "Lyra… who are you talking to?"
I close my eyes.
The resonance stirs again.
I whisper, barely audible:"Someone I can't lose again."