But the men… They just kept smiling.
Not nervous smiles. Not we are coping badly smiles. No—these were full-blown, soft-eyed, slack-jawed, I just saw my crush walk into the room and she made eye contactsmiles.
The kind of smiles people get when they're hallucinating puppies. Or free food. Or emotional validation. I stared at them in absolute, soul-deep disbelief.
"Unbelievable," I snapped. "THREE DAYS OF STORMS. Freezing rain. Lightning trying to smite us personally. Sleep deprivation. Trauma bonding. And this is what breaks you?"
I waved vaguely at the fog. "Pretty voices? Really?"
Sir Alex let out a dreamy sigh.
A sigh. Like a man staring at a sunset over a wheat field he intended to retire in.
Sir Jin actually lifted a hand and smoothed his hair, posture straightening like he was about to go on a first date instead of be eaten by a mythological murder-mermaid.
Henry swallowed and whispered, reverently, "She's… she's walking toward me…"
Walking.
Toward.
You.
