Chapter 210

• I woke before the light had fully spread across the room. The curtains were only half closed, which meant the rising sun had a way of slipping through the opening, painting a long golden line on the floorboards. The stillness of the house wrapped itself around me, so soft and steady that for a moment I did not move at all. I listened to the quiet, to the faint hum of the city that seemed distant at this hour, and to the sound of Julian’s breathing beside me. His chest rose and fell in a rhythm that had steadied me so many times before.
• For weeks now we had circled the subject of goodbye without ever stepping fully into it. There had been words that tried to shape what a separation would mean, and silences that said even more than words could. I had imagined that such an ongoing conversation might break something inside me, yet instead it had left me strangely open, almost tender in a way I had not expected. The thought of parting was not sharp anymore. It was heavy, yes, but it carried a kind of softness, as if both of us had agreed that we would not leave scars on each other.
• I turned slightly, letting my face rest against the pillow as I watched him. He stirred at the shift of weight and slowly blinked awake. His eyes met mine, still cloudy from sleep, and there was that quiet smile that always came before he found his words.