“You didn’t have to,” Liora pointed at her. “You’re pretending you’re not stressed, but you absolutely are. Girl, listen. Don’t get yourself stuck on ‘silent brooding mountain man’ mode.”
Zara frowned. “That’s not?—”
“You’re thinking about him,” she singsonged.
Zara scowled. “We haven’t even talked since happy hour.”
“So?” Liora shrugged. “Maybe he’s busy.”
“He’s always busy.”
“Zara,” Liora said, leaning forward, “everyone on this team is busy. But you? You’re acting like he got hit with a memory-wipe spell.”
Zara groaned softly. “I’m not acting like anything.”
“You’re brooding,” Liora corrected. “Big-time brooding. Premium-level brooding. Like, ‘I should be standing on a balcony with dramatic wind’ brooding.”
Zara rolled her eyes so hard it hurt. “Stop.”
“I’m just saying,” Liora went on, ignoring her, “you two talked once, had vibes, and now you’re convinced he forgot you exist.”
“He didn’t forget,” Zara muttered. “We’re just…working. Assigned different tasks.”
“Mhm,” Liora said, unconvinced. “Or maybe he’s also over there thinking,‘Why hasn’t Zara looked at me today?’”
Zara snorted into her coffee. “You’re delusional.”
“Maybe,” Liora said, grinning, “but I’m not blind.”
Zara stared at the table, hating how warm her face felt.
“I’m just saying,” Liora cut in. “If you like him? Cool. If you don’t? Also cool. But don’t let your brain do the whole ‘doom-scroll your feelings’ thing.”
Zara blinked. “Is that…an idiom now?”
“It is when I say it,” Liora said confidently. “Point is, don’t spiral. Don’t soft-launch your emotions. And for the love of the Fates, don’t go full NPC waiting for him to make a move.”
Zara squeezed her eyes shut. “Why are you so exhausting?”
“And you’re crushing,” Liora said, sipping her drink. “Denial is a river, babe, and you are drowning in it.”
Zara set her cup down a little too hard. “I hate you.”
Liora grinned. “You love me.”
Zara rushed out of the break room before Liora could get another word in, clutching her coffee like a shield. The hallway felt too bright, too long, especially when her cheeks still felt suspiciously warm.
Their team’s office was quieter. Cooler. A rush of relief passed through her when she stepped inside.
Then she saw him.
Hektor was at his desk, broad shoulders hunched slightly, attention locked on his monitor. How had she not noticed he was here? Her pulse picked up in a way she immediately scolded herself for. She sipped her coffee and pretended her heartbeat wasn’t ridiculous.
She approached before she could overthink it.
On his screen, neon graphics flashed, arcing symbols, pulsing runes, the bright borderline-chaotic aesthetic of one of Vale Crossing’s most popular gossip sites.
“Lifting the Vale,” she said lightly. “Oh, I love that one.”
