Sienna’s POV


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    I drew in a long breath. My eyes lingered on the invitation as if it could somehow hand me an answer. Then, slowly, I set it back


    down on the table.


    “I’ll think about it,” I finally murmured, my voice nearly drowned out by the mor echoing inside my own chest.


    Liam gave a small nod, as though that alone was enough for him. “Alright,” he said softly. “That’s enough for now.”


    I nced at my half-finished breakfast. The thick sandwich that had seemed unappetizing earlier now tasted like nothing on my


    tongue. But I didn’t want to hear another lecture from Liam, so I forced myself to take one more small bite.


    “Finish your breakfast, Sienna,” he said with a faint smile one that, strangely, was beginning to look familiar again in my eyes.


    I nodded silently, sipping from my cup of tea that had already cooled. Unease crept into me as I noticed Liam still sitting there,


    leaningfortably against the chair back as if this were his own home.


    I inhaled slowly, trying to steady the frantic rhythm of my heartbeat. The blue invitation stilly on the table, motionless yet


    throbbing somehow, sending waves into my thoughts. The simple words written there tore through the fragileyers I had worked


    so hard to build. It was as if someone had pried open a door I had locked tightly, letting in an unfamiliar light without permission.


    Lowering my gaze, I stared at the sandwich in my hand. It was nd, almost impossible to swallow, but I forced it down anyway,


    unwilling to let Liam use me of weakness. Between every reluctant bite, my thoughts spun rejecting, weighing, yearning all at


    once. Noah. His name alone was enough to make my chest tremble, to ignite the longing I had buried deep within.


    Leaning back in my chair, I let the fatigue seep into me. Across the table, Liam remained, calm as ever, seemingly unaffected by


    my difort. I could feel his presence pressing into my space, threading through the very air I breathed. There was a time when


    I had been used to this back when we still belonged to each other, back when words between us didn’t carry distance and scars. Now, his presence only made me more aware of the chasm that had formed.


    I shifted my eyes toward the window. The sky was brightening, sunlight slipping gently through the thin curtains. The sound of traffic grew louder, blending with the hum of the waking city, Life outside carried on as usual, untouched by the small storm


    ying out in this apartment. The contrast stung.


    My hand, almost on its own, reached again for the invitation, unfolding the simple paper. My eyes traced over the cheerful words as though they bore no weight. “Kindergarten Graduation Farewell.” The phrase lodged itself in my mind, echoing like the voice of a child calling out. I imagined Noah tiny in his little uniform, smiling as he waved from the stage. The image caught in my throat, tightening it.


    I folded the invitation shut quickly, afraid of letting myself drift too far into the picture. But even closed, the image lingered inside me. Something quivered in my chest, a mix of longing and fear tangled together.


    I rose from my chair, walking slowly toward the kitchen, trying to escape Liam’s gaze, which felt too heavy to bear. Setting the


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    empty te in the sink, I turned on the faucet, letting the water run without touching it. The sound of the stream was a smallfort, masking the unsettled pounding of my heart.


    Lowering my head, I rested my hands on the edge of the sink. In the faint reflection on a wet te, I caught a glimpse of my own face. Lines of weariness. Tension I couldn’t hide. The old wounds weren’t visible, but I felt them in every breath I drew.


    After a while, I returned to the dining table, taking in the room now bathed in morning light. Everything looked ordinary chairs, table, teacup yet something had shifted. Liam’s presence had dragged back memories I’d tried to bury. The warmth that once


    existed. The betrayal that could never be erased.


    I sank back into my chair, my gaze falling on the invitation again. The hardest part of all this wasn’t Liam’s presence it was the


    truth that my heart was still fragile whenever it came to Noah. That little boy was the one gap in my defenses, the single reason I


    could still be shaken.


    Closing my eyes, I let out a long, slow breath. I didn’t yet know what choice I would make, didn’t know if I was strong enough to be


    there that day. All I knew was that right now, I stood at another crossroads.


    “Why are you still here?” I asked softly, trying to keep my tone neutral.


    Liam turned his head, meeting my gaze without hesitation. “Because I still want to be here.”


    I frowned. “But… weren’t you just here to give me this invitation?”


    He nodded, unbothered. “Yes. But I also wanted to make sure you ate. You looked like someone who hadn’t slept all night.”


    I sighed, ncing at the wall clock. Eight-twenty. My head felt as though it might split open. “Liam, you don’t have to.”


    “I know,” he cut in quickly. “I don’t have to. But I want to.”


    I looked at him. “You can’t keep doing this. Showing up whenever you want, acting as if…”


    “As if what?” he asked calmly.


    I didn’t answer. The words were too painful to finish. As if there were still us. As if none of this had ever ended.


    Liam didn’t push me for a reply. He just sat there, watching me in silence. Somehow, his presence made this small room feel full.


    I went back to chewing my sandwich, faster this time, just so I could hurry and tell him to leave. But when I looked at him again, he smiled.


    “I’ll wait until you’re done,” he said softly.


    “To make sure I don’t leave a single crumb?” I asked sarcastically.


    He chuckled quietly, “No. But so I know you can still take care of yourself.”


    His words cut deep. I lowered my gaze, unwilling to let him see the change in my expression.


    I was strong enough. I didn’t need protection from anyone. Not even from the one person I had once trusted most and who had


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    hurt me most.


    And yet, Liam’s presence today… it was like slicing open a sealed door in time. Letting old memories seep back in through cracks I thought I had shut for good.


    Strangely, I didn’t immediately tell him to leave.


    I just sat there, chewingzily, while he waited.


    I kept my eyes down, trying to swallow thest bite of a breakfast that now tasted utterly nd. Each chew felt like a weight, no longer just a simple morning routine but a burden pressing into me. What stung more was the bitter awareness that I hadn’t


    chased him out. I let him stay, with that calm gaze of his, as though this home still remembered him as though I still remembered


    him.


    His presence carried an uncanny weight, like shards of the past forced into the room I had tried so carefully to keep free of memories. I had fought so hard to build a world without him a world perhaps imperfect, but safe enough to protect me from old wounds. Yet now, with him sitting only a few steps away, all of it felt threatened.


    GET IT N…


    11:23 AM Tue 2 Sep