I don’t belong here.
Not really.
But she does.
This is where she has nightmares alone.
Where she checks the window twice before sleeping.
Where she jumped at the sound of her phone vibrating.
And she’s somewhere else tonight.
Safe.
Warm.
With Finn.
My stomach tightens again.
I hate that it matters.
I hate that I care.
I hate that part of me wishes I were the one she leaned into like that.
I stand abruptly.
Enough.
I sweep the whole apartment one more time, slower this time.I read every shadow, every corner, every crevice.Nothing.Nothing.Nothing.
Good.
Good.
Good.
When I’m satisfied, I turn off the lights and step into the hallway.I lock the door behind me and pull until I feel the click of the deadbolt.
But I don’t leave.
Not yet.
I walk down the stairs and out onto the street, then cross to the opposite sidewalk and lean against a streetlamp where I can see her windows.
Third floor.Second from the left.
The faintest glow seeps through the blinds.
Not from her.
From the heater.
Still, I watch it.
I don’t feel the cold.
