Making it look like a joke instead of a declaration.
I opened my mouth to correct him.
To say it wasn’t?—
But the damage is already done.
And Stella’s face changes. I’ve never seen something shut down that fast. Like a door slamming in a hurricane.
“Stella—”
She pulled away.
And when she looks at me?
There’s nothing there.
No heat.
No softness.
Just a blank slate.
She walked out.
I shoved past people, ignoring Leo’s hand on my arm. But he held me firmly.
“Tristan, wait?—”
“Not now. Leo.”
Girls stepped in my path. My face was a thundercloud. The laughter might still be going but so was my heartbeat.
I searched the hallways.
The locker rooms.
Outside.
Nothing.
Gone.
She didn’t answer my texts.
Stopped flirting with me in class.
When I tried to talk to her, she turned her shoulder.
Like I was air.
Irrelevant.
That’s worse than hatred.
So I tracked her address down.
Warm light in the windows.
