She rang the bell.
Didn't break the door.
Didn't fly through the ceiling.
Didn't even hover dramatically outside my window with wind in her hair like the tragic heroine of a soap opera.
She rang the damn bell.
Progress, people.
Cassie looked up from the couch, wearing nothing but one of my shirts again—long, soft, definitely mine.
"Did you order something?" she asked, not even pretending to move.
I smirked. "Yeah. Guilt. Angst. And a five-foot-three goddess with unresolved emotional issues."
I opened the door and there she was.
Titania.
Hair still damp from a shower. Civilian clothes. Leather jacket. The kind she wore when she wanted to feel normal, like she wasn't capable of punching through a battleship.
Her eyes flicked past me, straight to Cassie, lounging like she paid rent here.
"Of course," she said under her breath.
I leaned against the doorway. "Miss me?"
Her jaw tightened.
That was a yes.
---
We sat across from each other. Cassie stayed where she was, still in hearing distance—because of course she did.
Titania didn't speak at first. Just watched me.
I knew that look, the one that said, I shouldn't be here.
The one that meant, Tell me to leave. Before I do something I can't take back.
I didn't say a word, just let the silence stretch until she broke first.
"You're changing," she said.
"Yeah," I said. "It's called character development."
> "This isn't funny, Sentinel."
"Could've fooled me."
Her eyes flared. Literally. Just for a second.
Old habit.
She always gets hotter when she's angry.
---
"You think this is a joke?" she said. "You think people aren't scared of you?"
I leaned forward. "No. I hope they're scared of me."
Cassie made a soft, pleased noise from the couch. I ignored her.
"You were better than this," Titania whispered. "You used to be—"
"Broken? Exhausted? Controlled?" I cut in.
She didn't respond.
"You know what I remember?" I said, voice low. "You. On the mats. Day three of training. I said something stupid, and you tripped over your own feet."
Her cheeks flushed. "You're imagining things."
"Am I?" I grinned. "You're biting your lip again, by the way."
She froze.
Cassie chuckled. "She does do that."
Titania shot her a glare that could vaporize a building.
---
She stood up fast. "This was a mistake."
"Probably," I said, standing too.
We were close now, too close.
She looked up at me, eyes burning with something halfway between fury and desire.
"I can't do this," she whispered.
"Sure you can."
Her hands trembled. "You'll ruin me."
"I know."
And that's when she kissed me.
Just once. Hard. Like she needed to burn it out of her system.
Then she turned and left without another word.
The door closed behind her with a soft click.
Cassie whistled. "She's gonna be trouble."
I smiled, still watching the door.
"She already is."
---
To be continued…