“You never said anything.”
“I couldn’t.”
“Why?”
I lean forward again, jaw tight.
“Because in Vakutan culture, the bond is everything.”
Roxy doesn’t move.
I press on.
“When it forms, it’s final. You don’t get to unchoose it. It’s not casual. It’s not dating. You don’t fall in and out of it.”
Her eyes narrow slightly.
“You think I don’t know how to commit?”
“That’s not what I’m saying.”
“Then whatareyou saying, Vrok?”
I meet her gaze.
“I didn’t want to trap you.”
She stops breathing for half a second.
I can see it—the flicker of hurt under the surface. I shake my head quickly.
“Not because I didn’t want it. Not because I don’t wantyou. I do.”
“Then why?—”
“Because you’re human. And this isn’t your world. Your rules. Your biology. And I wasn’t going to use some invisible thread to bind you to me like a leash. You deserve the right to choose.”
Her face softens. Just barely.
I press on, quiet now.
“You’ve had your life ripped apart more times than I can count. I wasn’t gonna be another thing that took your choices away.”
She looks down.
Then she laughs.
Quiet.
Bitter.
“You know what’s funny?”
“What?”
“I thought you didn’tfeelit.”
I sit up straighter. “What?”
