I left earlier after Jessica called, her voice still lingering in my head even after the line went dead. She had dropped the call and then disappeared into whatever life waited for her outside mine.

Now, i was in my room, unable to sleep. The house was silent, not calm because my mind wasn't. Not restful. Just… silent in a way that pressed against my ears, like it was asking me questions.

I lay on my back, staring at the ceiling, counting the slow rhythm of my breathing. It didn’t help. My mind refused to settle.

It kept drifting back to Darius.

I shut my eyes briefly, as if that...