The days passed quietly, almost too quietly.
Elena began to notice the shift more with each sunrise. The shadows that once lingered on corners where she thought she saw someone—gone. The feeling of being watched that used to send chills down her spine—absent. It was supposed to be relief, she thought. A normal life, untouched and unobserved. But instead, it felt like abandonment.
Even as she sat with Liam on the cracked bench outside the university library, half-listening to him explain something about an upcoming debate competition, her mind was far, far away. Somewhere behind the gray clouds, somewhere in the corners where Luca used to watch her.
She hadn't seen him. Not even once. No notes. No sudden gifts. No shadowed figure across the street when she walked home. Not even the lingering warmth of a presence. Nothing. It was as if he had vanished into the very silence that used to define his attention.
"Elena?" Liam's voice pulled her back.
She blinked. "Yeah?"
"I was saying," he cleared his throat, eyes flicking away for a moment. "You seem different lately."
She gave a small smile. "Different how?"
"Like you're waiting for something… or someone."
She froze, her breath catching. Her gaze dropped to her hands in her lap. "Maybe I am."
Liam let the silence settle for a second before speaking again, his tone gentler this time. "I know you've been going through a lot. And I've been trying not to push, really. But I can't keep pretending that I don't feel something whenever I'm with you."
Elena's chest tightened. This wasn't happening. Not now.
Liam leaned in slightly, his voice low and sincere. "I like you, Elena. A lot. I've liked you for months now. And I thought, maybe with everything going on, you might've noticed… maybe you feel something too."
Her throat closed up. Of all the things she'd prepared herself for, this wasn't one of them. Liam had been her friend. A safe space in the mess of her mind. But she couldn't give him what he was asking for. She couldn't give anyone that.
"Liam…" she whispered.
His hopeful expression flickered.
"I care about you. You've been nothing but kind, and you've always been here for me. But I'm not in a place to… I'm not ready for something like that."
The disappointment in his eyes was immediate. Sharp, but masked with a small nod.
"I get it," he said quietly, standing up. "I just needed to say it."
"Liam, I didn't mean to hurt—"
"It's fine," he said, giving a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "I'll see you around."
He walked off before she could say anything more, hands stuffed into his pockets.
Elena stared after him, her heart twisting. She hadn't meant to wound him. But lying would've been worse.
As the sky turned dusky above her, she stood slowly, her body heavy with the weight of the moment. She walked home in silence. No footsteps behind her. No flicker of movement in the distance.
And for the first time in weeks, she didn't look over her shoulder.
But someone still watched her.
From the rooftop across the street, hidden in shadow, Luca Romano stood like a phantom. He had been there the whole time. Watching. Listening. Waiting.
His jaw clenched, his fists tight.
He had promised himself he would stay away—for her safety.
But watching her slip away from him, even into the arms of someone harmless like Liam, felt like dying slowly.
Still, he remained in the shadows.
For now.