The door opened with its usual quiet click.
And there he was.
Joshua Lockhart, the boy who had spent the last few weeks softening the edges of my world, one small kindness at a time.
But this Joshua…wasn’thim.
His jaw was tight, his eyes hollow, his shoulders drawn back as if he were bracing for impact. As if just seeing me there was too much.
“Hey, I came a little early but—” I said softly, lifting the small box between us, the red ribbon trembling slightly in my hand. “Happy Valenti—”
“I—”
I paused, blinking up at him as he uttered a hesitant, painful-soundingIthat made my chest ache a bit, but maybe… maybe he was nervous. Maybe he wants to say something that is hard for someone like him.
Maybe something… meaningful? Something that’s been brewing between us these past weeks?
“Are you—”
“—don’t want to see your face.”
My voice died mid-word.
My fingers froze.
He said it so low, so calm, but it hit harder than any scream could. He stared right through me. Not past me,throughme. Like I wasn’t even real.
“…again.”
The last word fell like glass, shattering everything inside me in an instant.
For a second, I thought I’d misheard. Maybe I imagined it, maybe it was a joke, maybe—
But then he took a step back.
And another.
And the door—ourdoor, the one that always opened to warmth, to Honey’s tiny paws, to quiet dinners and slow laughter—slammed shut.
The sound echoed down the hallway.
I didn’t move. Couldn’t.
My hand was still outstretched, the bow on the box now trembling with me.
The air felt thick. My chest, heavier.
Something was lodged in my throat, sharp and burning, and before I could even stop it, the tears came, hot, silent, falling faster than I could wipe them away.
I didn’t even know why I was crying so hard.
Maybe because I thought he’d changed.
Maybe because I saw him change.
Maybe because this time, I actually believed him when he said I was safe with him.
And now… I wasn’t.
