Ava's footsteps echoed softly against the floor as she made her way back to her room. Each step felt heavier than the last, weighed down by the memory of standing in front of Damian just minutes ago. She clutched the blanket of silence around her like a shield, but the echo of her own voice, the words she had said kept reverberating in her head. Human!
The word was absurd. Completely ridiculous. She had actually said it out loud, and to him. To Damian Cross.
Her hands trembled slightly as she reached her room. She fumbled with the doorknob, almost dropping it, and finally managed to push the door open. The room was dimly lit, it should have felt safe and comforting. But she couldn't shake the heat of that moment, the proximity, the way her pulse had thrashed against her ribcage as if trying to escape.
