Chapter 12

The countdown is almost over.

Two days

Fall is here. The air is crisper now, with a freshness that wasn’t there before. The sky is weighed down by thick clouds, and drizzle begins to form fog on the streets, making the sidewalks slippery.

I wrap my shirt tighter around me, the thin fabric doing nothing to keep out the cold. I slip on my slippers and walk downstairs slowly, carefully, as if delaying my final routine here.

And then-

A black umbrella tilts toward me, shielding me from the rain before I can even notice the drops hitting my skin.

“Always walk in the rain.” comes a low, familiar voice. “Aren’t you afraid of catching a cold?”

I pause.

He holds the umbrella handle tightly–too tight. The tendons in his fingers stand out, and his knuckles pale from the

pressure.

Pax Brown.

No more pretending.

No more wearing faded hoodies or worn sneakers. No more carefully crafting an image of a struggling man. He stood before me now, radiating the quiet, gaily–bred wealth that had always been second nature to him.

But his face–his expression-

That hadn’t changed.

He smiled.

As if nothing had happened.

standing before someone he’d

if we weren’t in the midst of

I have that Pax Brown came to me personally?” My voice was light, nonchalant. Detached, as if he’d shown up at

the casual mask slipping in an instant. “Do you have to talk to me like

I almost laughed.

Chapter 12

the rules of our

how much I could see, how much I could

it him who, just a few days ago, stood in that hospital room, looking at me with cold, distant

you walk out that door, we’re really done.”

And yet

He’s here.

sorry. Let me

I didn’t answer.

explain.”

be redeemed, as if he

would have been inappropriate not to give her gifts.

I didn’t move.

his temple. His expression was a careful combination of guilt and sincerity, so close to

all this time, I’ve been playing

my friends, I’m reckless and arrogant. They expect me

I was just a boy. A man with nothing but heart.”

at him.

I didn’t

I panicked.” His hands clenched into fists at

me should

All

explained everything.

some days he was

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