The morning sun slipped gently through the curtains, warm and soft, but the peaceful glow did nothing to calm the nervous coil inside my stomach. I woke up with a faint ache in my chest, the lingering weight of yesterday’s tension still clinging to me like a shadow.

Elijah was already awake, sitting at the edge of the bed as he tied his shoelaces. His back was slightly hunched, his shoulders a little stiff, and even before he turned around, I felt something in him had shifted ...