Cassius had been quietly savoring the silence, his eyes still on the faint glow of lanterns outside the window. But beside him, Julie's thoughts were anything but calm.
Her heart was racing.
'Maybe, I have fallen for you.'
She replayed the words over and over in her head. The softness in her own voice, the slip of her tongue that had nearly sounded like a confession.
The more she thought about it, the more her cheeks burned.
She wanted to sink into the earth.
Leaning against Cassius's shoulder now, she didn't dare say another word.
'How do I move on? What do I even say next?'
She bit her lip, her mind scrambling for an escape from the crushing embarrassment.
Then, suddenly, an idea sparked in her mind. She jolted upright, pulling back quickly from his shoulder.
"Cassius!" She blurted, perhaps a little too loudly. "I, I just remembered something. I totally forgot about it until now."
