“Easy.”
“I’m okay,” I whisper.
He gives me a look.
Not believing that for a second.
I almost smile.
Almost.
“You don’t have to pretend with me,” he says quietly.
I know that.
Still—
“…hurts,” I admit.
His hand tightens around mine.
“I know.”
The way he says it—
It’s not just about the injury.
It’s everything.
All of it.
I study him again.
Closer now.
Clearer.
“You stayed the whole time,” I say.
Not a question.
A truth.
He nods once.
“Yeah.”
“Why?”
The word slips out before I can stop it.
Not because I don’t know.
But because I need to hear it.
His gaze locks onto mine.
Something shifts there.
