Chapter Eleven: slipping slowly
Rain started around noon.
It came in light at first, brushing against the windows like a whisper. Then heavier. By afternoon, the whole city looked like it had been washed in grey.
Elena didn't mind it.
She sat near the window with her legs curled under her, holding a warm mug, watching people run with umbrellas, jackets pulled over heads.
She liked the distance. Being inside. Being unseen.
It felt safe.
Not happy. Just… safe.
---
She stayed quiet most of the day.
Did laundry. Wrote in her journal. Reorganized the bookshelves just because she could.
No one called her.
No one needed anything.
The silence didn't feel as lonely today.
It felt like breathing room.
It felt like life.
---
Aiden didn't come home until close to ten.
She heard the lock click, slow and heavy. Then his shoes on the floor. Jacket tossed somewhere near the door.
She didn't get up.
Just kept reading.
But she listened,felt his movement,caught his scent.
---
He found her in the study.
She'd lit a single candle. The overhead lights felt too harsh. A soft playlist hummed low from the speakers—mostly piano, nothing with words.
"You're still up," he said.
She didn't look at him. "Didn't feel like sleeping."
He hovered in the doorway for a second.
Then stepped in.
---
He didn't take the chair.
He sat on the floor, leaned back against the couch like it was the only place he could land,and she didn't ask why,but after a moment, she closed her book and looked down at him.
"Long day?"
He gave a short nod.
"Anyone die?" she asked, dry.
A faint smile twitched at the corner of his mouth. "Not today."
"Well. There's that."She smiled openly,not hiding or pretending
---
They didn't talk for a while.
Just sat.
The room felt warmer than usual. The rain outside steady, constant. The kind of noise that settled in your bones if you let it.
Aiden rubbed his hands over his face.
"You ever think about walking away?" he asked suddenly but she didn't flinch.
"All the time," she said.
He nodded. "Me too."
"Why don't you?"
"I don't know."He answered,though lost in thought.
She leaned back. "That's not an answer."
He looked at her intently with burning eyes "I know." he whispered.
And there were no more words between them for a while.
He looked up at her.
"You're not what I expected."
She stared down at him. "Is that good or bad?"
"I haven't decided."
She let out a breath. "Well. Let me know if I can make the experience more convenient."
That earned a quiet laugh.
Not joyful.
Just real.
---
After a while, she stood.
Walked to the bookshelf, scanned the titles with no real intention of choosing one.
"I used to want a life like this," she said. "The city. The view. The kind of quiet that makes people think you're important."
He looked at her. "And now?"
She shrugged. "Now I just want something that doesn't drain me."
Aiden watched her,like he didn't know what to say that wouldn't make it worse.
So he didn't say anything.
---
Before she left the room, she paused by the door.
"I'm not your enemy," he said again, softer this time she looked at him,shook her head "No. But you're not on my side either."
Then she walked out.
And he stayed there, alone, on the floor.
---
He didn't sleep that night.Not well.
He Kept tossing, turning, shifting the pillows like that would fix something.
It didn't.
And in the next room, Elena slept with the door closed and the candle blown out—like she meant it.