She winks at Grayson. “Good luck.”
Then she’s gone, bouncing down the hall like she didn’t just crack open a door that has been closed for years.
He holds out the daisies. “These are for you.”
My throat tightens so fast it hurts.
“You didn’t have to?—”
“I know,” he says softly. “I wanted to.”
My fingers brush his when I take the flowers. And my whole body goes hyperaware again, like my skin is always waiting for him now.
I roll my eyes, but it comes out soft because I can’t help it. Grayson steps closer, just enough that I can smell him. Clean soap and that faint hint of mint that makes me think he’s always trying to stay awake. His eyes flick over my face like he’s memorizing, then land on my mouth for half a second before he looks away like he’s being good on purpose.
My stomach flips.
He clears his throat. “You ready?”
I start to nod, then I hesitate because something in my chest tightens unexpectedly.
“Kai…” I start.
Grayson’s gaze sharpens. “Yeah?”
“He—he saw Wren,” I say, and the sentence feels like a rock dropping into water.
Grayson’s brows knit. “And?”
“And he bolted,” I say.
Grayson exhales through his nose, sympathetic. “That tracks. There’s a lot of history there.”
I chew on the inside of my cheek. “It’s going to be…a thing.”
Grayson nods once. “Let’s not worry about it tonight. It’ll still be there to overanalyze tomorrow.”
The simple sentence makes my lungs loosen.
Not tonight.
Tonight is my birthday. Tonight, I get to exist without fixing everyone.
Grayson offers his hand, palm up, not grabbing. Just offering. I stare at it for half a second—my choice again.
Then I place my hand in his.
Warm. Rough. Real.
His fingers curl around mine gently. Not claiming. Just holding. And my body responds like it recognizes this kind of safety.
Grayson’s voice is quiet. “Let’s go.”
Dinner is exactly what he promised. Not loud. Not crowded. A small place off campus with warm lighting and booths that feel like hiding without being hidden. He picks a corner table. My back to the wall. Exit visible.
No comment.
Just…considered.
