18:13 – Daisy:I should’ve known that was coming. From a certain Mr. Miller I expected more… profound thoughts.
18:14 – Damian:I can be profound. But you’d have to bend, low enough for me to reach where things get truly interesting.
18:14 – Daisy:You depraved man.
18:15 – Damian:What can I say? My reputation precedes me.
My face burned. I shook my head in disbelief and smiled like an idiot—like someone walking straight into a buzz saw, heart pounding, hope stupid and steady. I should’ve put the phone down and deleted the conversation. Instead, I sat grinning. Cold eggs in my lap, a message from Damian Miller in my hand.
00:43 – Damian:You’re not sleeping.
00:44 – Daisy:How would you know?
00:44 – Damian:Maybe I’m ten meters below your window. Or sitting in your closet.
I shot upright in bed, staring at the screen. Part of me laughed. Another part listened. Had there been a sound?
I threw the blanket back, feet finding the cool floor. Step by step, I padded through the apartment. It was dark, empty. I flicked the lights on—just in case. Like something from a bad thriller, I crept to the window. The curtain rustled when I pulled it aside. Nothing—just the night spread over everything like a second skin. I stepped back.
A strange pull settled in my stomach. Not exactly fear. Not quite trust. The air felt heavier, as if someone had already decided I wouldn’t be alone tonight.
00:51 – Damian:Were you looking for me?
00:51 – Daisy:You’re not funny.
00:52 – Damian:If I were trying to be funny, you wouldn’t have checked. And you wouldn’t be trembling.
00:52 – Daisy:I didn’t tremble. I didn’t check.
00:52 – Damian:You moved the curtain. Your shadow is pretty, you know that?
00:53 – Daisy:Stop it.
00:53 – Damian:Stop what?
00:54 – Daisy:If you’re trying to scare me… you’re succeeding.
00:54 – Damian:Fear is the flicker between control and desire. I burn in you, Daisy.
I set the phone down and stared at the ceiling, feeling the faint tremor under my skin—the tiny electric thrill that leapt when hereached me. Like a shaft of light through cold fog, like a touch you can’t see but feel everywhere. I closed my eyes, then reached for the phone again, because I couldn’t help myself.
00:56 – Daisy:You didn’t contact me for two weeks.
00:56 – Damian:Did you miss me?
00:56 – Daisy:I learned what it’s like to be air. Now I know.
00:57 – Damian:Air? You’re smoke. I try to cough you out, but you stick in my lungs.
00:57 – Daisy:You weren’t there…
00:57 – Damian:I was never far. You just weren’t looking.
Chapter 11 Daisy
The train rolled lazily through the green landscape. Warm sunlight cast flickering shadows across the seats. I leaned back, letting the steady rhythm of the wheels on the tracks settle into me. Staring out the window, I pulled my phone from my bag and typed a message to Jenn.
13:05 – Daisy:On the train. Really looking forward to our weekend!
