NOAH
The door opened with a soft, clinical hiss. I didn't have to look up to know it was Nick.
He was standing there, a silhouette of white fabric and cold authority, taking in the wreckage of the scene.
I didn't pull my hand away from Cassian's immediately. I stayed there for one heartbeat longer, my fingers entwined with the heavy, unmoving heat of his palm.
My face was a mess. I knew what I looked like... the raw, red edges of eyes that had been leaking grief for the better part of an hour.
Nick's expression was unreadable. It was a mask he wore better than his surgical one.
He stayed silent for a second longer than usual, long enough for me to feel the weight of his judgment.
"Time's up," he said. The words were flat. They were final.
He didn't adjust his tone for the fact that I was currently breaking apart next to Cassian.
I didn't move. The word time landed in the room, but my body refused to receive the instruction.
