Lines aren't always drawn with barriers.
Sometimes they're drawn with permission.
We crossed back into the warmer districts where light softened and conversations breathed. The shift wasn't subtle anymore—I could feel it in my steps, in how the city responded when I slowed or stopped.
Here, hesitation still existed.
Here, people still noticed one another.
Behind us, the white-lit district remained perfectly ordered, perfectly silent in the way rules preferred. Ahead of us, things were messier—but alive.
Arjun glanced over his shoulder."Think he's still watching?"
"Yes," I said."But not personally."
Aaryan nodded."That kind of man doesn't stalk," he said."He categorizes."
The girl walked closer to me, voice low."They'll start separating places."
"They already have," I replied.
✦
