~Aria's POV
I stood by my door long after Ethan left.
I do not know why I did that. Maybe I was hoping he would turn back. Maybe I just did not want the night to end the way it did. The hallway outside was quiet, the lights dim, the kind of quiet that makes your own thoughts sound too loud.
I watched him through the small window as he walked toward his building.
He looked… sad.
Not the cold, distant kind of sad. Not the sharp kind either. It was heavy. Like something was pulling him down from the inside, like every step took effort. His shoulders were tight, his head slightly lowered, and for a moment, he looked like someone carrying a weight too big for one person.
My chest tightened.
"Did I cross a line?" I whispered to myself.
I replayed the moment again. Him holding my hand. Him saying it was okay. The warmth of his palm against mine. The way his voice had softened, just a little.
I frowned.
"No," I said quietly. "He touched me first."
