I gently pulled away from Aaron, but my eyes didn't leave the door, because she was still there, standing just beyond the glass like she belonged, like she had every right to occupy that space, watching us with that same calm, unsettling composure, and then—as if she could feel my attention—she lifted her hand and waved, smiling in a way that wasn't polite or accidental but deliberate, knowing, like she understood something I didn't, and something sharp twisted low in my chest at the sight of it.
"Why is that lady here?" I asked, my voice quieter than I intended but edged enough to betray me, and I motioned toward the door without looking away from her, because I didn't trust myself to blink and miss whatever she was silently trying to say.
Aaron followed my gaze and let out a small breath, almost like this was nothing, like she was nothing. "Oh… that?" he said lightly. "She came with me, Alyssa. She's a friend."
A friend.
