The rain tapped softly against the café windows, a steady rhythm in the silence between them. Damien’s fingers were still wrapped around the soda bottle, untouched. Ava didn’t move. Her heart pounded so hard it felt like it echoed through her chest.

“Tell me everything,” she said again, her voice firm.

Damien looked down for a moment. Then back at her. There was no mask left on his face now. Just quiet honesty and something that looked like shame.

“It started in high school,” he said, voice low. “We were in the same building, but you never noticed me. I was… invisible. I had everything—money, a name—but I was miserable....