The question came out lower than she'd intended. More intimate.
Phei let the silence stretch. Let her feel the weight of it.
"Right now?" he said finally. "I want you to go back to calling me Phei."
She blinked. "That's... that's it?"
"For now."
"For now." She repeated it like she was testing for hidden meanings. "What about later?"
"Later is later. Right now is right now."
"That's very philosophical."
"I contain multitudes."
"You contain something. I'm not sure it's multitudes."
"Harsh but fair."
The night had shifted while they talked.
The empty school settled around them, quiet except for distant footsteps and the occasional door closing somewhere far away.
Patricia stood to adjust the blinds. A normal movement. Practical.
But it brought her closer to him. Close enough that he caught her scent again—
She paused.
Turned her head slightly.
