There’s no point pretending.
“Yeah,” I say quietly.“I am.”
Saying it out loud makes it feel different.
Heavier.
Real.
“How long have you known?” Leo asks.
“Since the night she showed up in that apartment wearing bunny slippers and threatened to call the police on me,” I say.
Leo smiles slightly.
“That tracks.”
“I don’t know what to do about Zane,” I admit after a second.“Or Perth. Or whatever just happened tonight.”
Leo crosses his arms thoughtfully.
“You and Lisa will figure it out,” he says.
That simple.
That confident.
Like it’s already decided.
“You sound very sure about that,” I tell him.
“I am,” he replies.“She trusts you.”
That lands harder than expected.
“Does she?” I ask.
“Yes.”
He doesn’t hesitate.
“And you trust her,” he adds.
“I do.”
“Then you’ll figure it out.”
I don’t go straight home after that conversation.
Instead, I drive around the city for almost forty minutes without realizing where I’m going. The traffic lights and side streets blur past me while my brain keeps replaying the exact moment Lisa froze upon seeing Perth. The way her shoulders tightened like she was bracing for something she didn’t want anyone else to notice.
I don’t like it. I don’t like any part of it. And I especially don’t like that she didn’t tell me why. Not because she owes me an explanation. Because I want to be someone she chooses to tell.
By the time I finally get back to my apartment, I already know I’m not going to sleep.
The place feels quieter than usual. Too quiet. Like something’s missing. It’s ridiculous, because Lisa has never actually lived here. Somehow, I still catch myself expecting to see her sitting on the couch with her feet tucked under her, like she belongs there.
I drop my keys on the counter. Walk past the kitchen. Sit down. Stand up again immediately. Then I do the only reasonable thing left. I call her.
