My stomach tightens.
What happened?
Everything inside me wants to know, but not like this. Not from them.
“I still can’t wrap my head around it.”
A drawer slides open and metal clinks. Something heavy gets set on the counter as a third voice enters.
“Like she actually did all that.” This is Zara—I think.
Who are they talking about?
Did what?
When?
To Cash?
My last question is answered as his body grows rigid against me.
Every muscle goes stone.
“Who does that?” Zoe asks. “Who thinks that’s okay behavior?”
A cupboard door creaks and glass rattles softly.
“She kept everything. Notes, screenshots, timestamps. Like a file.” Zara pauses as water starts running and then stops. “I heard it went on for months.”
“Years.”
Years?
“I suppose that’s why they call them stalkers.”
Now I go rigid.
Our first encounter hits hard: Me in his room. Him just happening to step out of the shower naked. The flash of emotions he’d tried to hide.
Jaclyn gives a humourless laugh. “Online at first. Then not online. And it wasn’t harmless.”
Their tone isn’t cruel. It’s not even gossiping, really. There is true concern within them.
“No wonder he’s cautious.” Jaclyn’s voice is right on the other side of the door. “Imagine never knowing if someone likes you or the version of you they’ve built in their head.”
I swallow, noticing how perfectly still Cash is.
The sound of chairs scraping echoes overhead. They’re settling in. Staying.
His hand shifts away from mine. It’s a small movement, but I notice. Retreating. Guard going up.
I lace my fingers through his and tug him down the stairs.
He doesn’t resist.
The stairs creak under us, and I hope the women don’t hear or investigate.
The air down here is cooler.
