"Then a semester," I finish.
One day at a time. One class at a time. One stretch of not fucking this up at a time.
Therestoftheweek follows the same pattern. We wake up, have breakfast together, drive to campus. Walk her to the theater building but let her go inside alone. Suffer through classes apart. Reconvene for lunch sometimes. Go to separate afternoon classes. Come home. Eat dinner. Exist in the same space without destroying each other.
It's shockingly mundane. Domestic in a way I never expected.
By Friday, it almost feels normal.
We're in the living room after dinner—she's on the couch reading for her Theater History class, Oakley's doing homework at the dining table, Corvus is on his tablet doing god knows what, and I'm existing. Watching her read. Memorizing the way her nose scrunches when she's concentrating.
"You're staring," she says without looking up.
"I'm observing."
"Same thing."
"Not quite."
She finally looks at me, one eyebrow raised. "What are you observing?"
"That you're happy." The words come out before I can stop them. "You look happy."
Her expression softens. "I am. Mostly."
"Mostly?"
"There's still Ben," she says quietly. "Monday."
Right. Monday.
I watch her go back to her reading, and something in my chest tightens. We made it one week. A whole week of peace and almost-normal.
"You're not going to do anything stupid, are you?" she asks without looking up.
"Define stupid."
"Dorian."
"I'll be civil," I promise.
"That's all I ask."
She turns a page. The lamplight catches in her hair. Corvus says something to Oakley about their shared assignment. Ordinary. Domestic.
One week down.
Let's see if we can make it two.
twenty-nine
Corvus
Thebureaucraticdelayboughtus eight days.
I'm staring at my laptop screen, multiple windows open tracking Ben Rosen's arrival on campus. Move-in confirmed. Dorm assignment: Morrison Hall, room 412. Class registration: complete. He's here. Actually here, despite my best efforts to slow the process.
Eight days instead of arriving last Monday. Could have been longer if I'd been willing to push harder, but Vespera made me promise. No more interference. No more sabotage.
