The rain filled the space between us, loud and steady.
I stayed where I was, close to the edge, watching the water spill off the roof. My sleeves were already wet, clinging uncomfortably to my arms.
"I lost my friend," I said quietly, more to explain than to start a conversation.
He nodded once. "I saw."
That was it.
No questions. No comments.
The silence returned, heavier this time but not awkward. Just two people waiting for the same thing to pass.
I shifted my weight, folding my arms loosely. Ashton leaned back against the wall, keeping a careful distance that I noticed and appreciated.
The rain showed no sign of stopping.
For a moment, I wondered how something so ordinary could feel so deliberate.
Then I stopped thinking altogether and let the sound of the rain take over.
The rain didn't ease.
If anything, it grew steadier, heavier, the kind that soaked through fabric and settled into your skin. The air cooled quickly, the earlier warmth completely gone.
I shifted my weight again, rubbing my hands together without thinking. My sweater clung uncomfortably to my arms, damp and useless against the cold. A shiver crept up my spine, subtle at first, then impossible to ignore.
It was a soft sweater incapable of protecting me in this rain.
I told myself it was nothing.
Still, my shoulders drew in slightly.
The rain kept falling.
Minutes passed. Maybe longer. Time felt slow under the overhang, measured only by the sound of water hitting concrete. I focused on that—on the rhythm—anything but the fact that my fingers were starting to feel stiff.
Another shiver slipped through me, sharper this time.
I exhaled softly, staring straight ahead.
Without looking directly at him, I noticed Ashton shift. Not closer. Just enough to pull his jacket open slightly, then shrug it off one shoulder.
He didn't say anything.
He stepped forward just enough to place it beside me, folded once, careful not to let it touch me unless I chose to take it.
His actions surprised me, I didn't think he would offer me his jacket after what I did.
I felt my cheeks heating up as I said at him before I could open my mouth to talk he stepped back as if withdrawing his offer.
I immediately took the jacket from him my fingers touching his in the slightest bit but he didn't even show any emotion, his face unreadable not like I expected anything.
Then, quietly, I draped it over my shoulders.
The warmth was immediate. Not dramatic—just enough to stop the shaking.
"Thanks," I said, barely above the rain.
He nodded once, eyes still on the downpour.
We went back to waiting.
The rain kept falling, but the cold didn't feel quite as sharp anymore—and somehow, the silence felt different too.