I miss you too, my love.
Try to sleep early tonight, all right?
His reply comes almost instantly.
NATHANIEL
I will if you promise to do the same.
I glance at the kitchen, where the lights have gone dim and things are finally still. My chest aches, but I smile, just a little.
OLIVIA
I promise.
Back at my parents’house, I head down the hall with my bag in hand, ready to collapse. My mom is washing up in the sink, elbow-deep in soapy water.
“Hey—” she calls without looking up. “Just so you know, Micheal is using your room now. You’ll be fine on the couch.”
She says it like it’s a minor detail. Like it’s not one more reminder of where I fall on the hierarchy here.
I stop at the edge of the doorway. The weight of my bag digs deeper into my shoulder.
“Okay,” I say, too softly for her to hear.
The living room is dark when I walk back in. I set my bag on the floor and stand there for a moment, staring at the couch like it might explain something to me.
I sit down, curl my legs beneath me, and pull my phone from my pocket. The screen lights my face in the dim light.
You still awake?
His reply comes a moment later, like he was waiting by the phone.
NATHANIEL
For you, always. Everything okay?
I rest the phone against my chest. The glow fades, but I don’t put it down.
In this house, no one notices I’m here. But heseesme—even from miles away.
The screen lights up again before I can let the moment settle.
Incoming Facetime—Nathaniel Caldwell
My heart kicks once. Hard.
I should ignore it. I asked for space, after all.
But I don’t.
I swipe to answer, and then he’s there, filling the frame with that force that always pulls me in. It’s dark on his end. His face is half-shadowed, lit only by the faint glow of what might be his bedside lamp. His hair’s a little rumpled, like he’s been running his hand through it, and the collar of his shirt is loose, like he never quite settled into bed.
“Hi,” he says softly. Then, after a breath, “I’m sorry. I know I shouldn’t be calling. I just… I’ve been worried about you.”
I shake my head, barely catching the smile that tugs at the corner of my mouth. “No. I’m glad you called.”
His eyes lift back to mine and in that moment, I see everything he’s trying not to show—how much he’s missed me, how hard he’s worked to give me space. It hits harder than I expect.
