-Kyle Vale:
I still can't fully believe that happened.
Even now.
Even with both hands on the steering wheel, the road stretching endlessly in front of me, the quiet hum of the car filling the silence between us—I still feel disconnected from reality in the strangest way possible.
Because every few minutes, my brain loops back to it again.
Caspian grabs my shirt.
Holding me there.
Not letting me pull away.
And every single time I remember it, my chest tightens all over again.
The car is quiet now. Not awkward quiet. Comfortable quiet. The kind that settles naturally after an emotionally exhausting day, where neither person feels pressured to fill every silence immediately.
The sky outside had already started dimming while we drove back from the Valerian territory. Mountains stretched in the distance behind us now, fading slowly beneath the orange and purple colors of the evening sky, while forests blurred past the windows in long shadows.
And Caspian was sitting beside me.
