Somewhere between 3 and 4 a.m., I had the dream.
The one where she was lying in bed next to me. Not doing anything wild—just breathing softly, asleep, her hand curled against my chest like it had always belonged there.
It felt so real that when I woke up, I looked to my left.
And for a half second, I thought she was actually there.
She wasn't.
Obviously.
And that should've been the end of it.
But when I sat up, sweating like I'd just sprinted through shame, all I could think was:
I'm so screwed.
8:00 AM
I came downstairs late, expecting the usual: silence, coffee, maybe a passive-aggressive Post-it from Dad about unloading the dishwasher.
Instead, I walked in and found Elena at the table, hair still wet from a shower, laptop open, looking half put-together, half barely functioning.
She looked up. "Morning."
I froze.
Because I hadn't seen her like this since the dream.
And my brain hadn't caught up to reality yet.
"You okay?" she asked, eyebrows lifting.
"Yeah," I lied. "Just… tired."
She gave me a small smile. "Rough night?"
I sat down. "You have no idea."
An Hour Later
We weren't saying anything, but the air was thick.
And I could feel it.
She was watching me when I wasn't looking.
I was watching her when she looked away.
The tension had gone from playful to oppressive.
Like we were both standing on the edge of a cliff, waiting to see who would jump first.
And then she closed her laptop and said the most dangerous sentence in existence.
"We need to talk."
My spine did a full-body flinch. "About?"
She didn't answer right away.
Instead, she poured herself more coffee, sat back down, and said very quietly:
"You feel it too, right?"
I didn't pretend I didn't know what she meant.
Because that would've been the second lie of the day, and I was already tired.
"Yeah," I said. "I feel it."
Her eyes dropped to the table.
"I didn't mean for this to happen," she whispered.
"I know."
"I didn't plan to—"
"You don't have to explain."
"But I do, Aaron. Because I don't know what I'm doing. I married your dad. I wanted… security. A fresh start. Something safe."
"You thought he was safe?"
"I thought I could make it work."
There was a silence.
A sharp one.
And then I said, quietly, "Do you regret it?"
She didn't answer.
But her silence screamed.
1:00 PM
We spent the rest of the day avoiding each other.
I stayed in my room. She stayed in hers.
Every sound in the house felt loud. A door creaking. A floorboard. Even the wind outside pressing against the windows.
It felt like something was going to break.
Maybe it already had.
5:30 PM — The Breaking Point
I found her in the laundry room.
It was stupid. I just went in to grab clean socks. But there she was, folding clothes with her hair tied up, sleeves pushed past her elbows.
Domestic. Beautiful. Completely heartbreaking.
She turned around slowly when she saw me.
And for once, she didn't smile.
She just looked… exhausted.
"I'm trying so hard not to hurt anyone," she said softly.
"I know."
"I thought I could control it. That it was just… temporary. That I was lonely and you were—"
She cut herself off.
"I was what?" I asked, stepping forward.
She swallowed. "Kind. Present. You looked at me like I was a real person. And I forgot what that felt like."
I didn't know what I was doing.
I didn't even decide to move.
But suddenly I was standing right in front of her.
And she was looking up at me with a mix of want and fear that made it hard to breathe.
"You still have time to walk away," I said.
She didn't move.
"You could stop this right now."
Still nothing.
I reached up, slowly, gently, and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
She closed her eyes.
"Tell me to go," I whispered.
But she didn't.
And that silence was louder than any no could ever be.
We Didn't Kiss.
Not yet.
But she leaned her forehead against mine for three seconds too long.
And in those three seconds, the line between almost and absolutely blurred so hard I forgot it existed.
Then she pulled away.
Fast.
"I need air," she said.
And then she was gone.
Again.
📘 End of Chapter 10
💬 YOUR TURN!
Do you think Elena's going to keep running from this… or finally give in?
Would you forgive her — or call her out for crossing lines?
👇 Drop your thoughts and predictions in the comments!
❤️ Hit that heart if this chapter made you feel too many things.
🔔 Follow to stay caught up — because Chapter 11 is about to take us somewhere we can't walk back from.