Something warm.
Something neither of them dared to touch.
Sixteen
Snow hammered the windshield in thick sheets, blurring the world into nothing but brake lights and wind. The Pike was deadlocked — not slowed, not crawling. Fully stopped, as if the entire city had decided to give up at once.
Inside the truck, the heater rattled and coughed, pushing out air that was warm in theory but hopeless in practice. Savannah could feel her fingertips going numb even inside her pockets.
Tilly hadn’t spoken in ten minutes.
And Savannah was aware of every second of it.
Not since they packed up from the live hit and got into the truck without looking at her.
Savannah stared hard at the storm. “We’re going to be here all night.”
“Probably.”
Their tone was clipped, neutral in a way that wasn’t neutral at all.
She shifted in her seat, her knee brushing Tilly’s by accident. She didn’t move right away. Tilly didn’t move, but Savannah felt the tension in them like a live wire.
She tried again. “You okay?”
“Fine.”
It was the kind of “fine” that meant nothing was fine.
Savannah let out a slow breath, fogging the window. “You’re being weird.”
Tilly’s hand tightened on the steering wheel. Just a twitch, but she saw it. “I’m being quiet.”
“You’re being distant.”
Tilly let out a humorless laugh. “Savannah, I’m always distant.”
That hit harder than they probably meant it to.
Savannah’s voice dropped. “Not with me.”
Tilly finally turned their head. Their eyes flicked over her, assessing, guarded, tired. “You sure about that?”
A cold jolt went through her chest. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means,” Tilly said slowly, “I don’t know where the hell I stand with you anymore.”
Savannah stared at them, stunned. The heater sputtered again, pushing out another useless puff of air.
“Where is this coming from?” she finally asked.
Tilly rubbed their thumb against the leather of the wheel, jaw flexing. “Forget it.”
“No,” Savannah snapped, heat rising in her cheeks. “I’m not going to forget it. You said it, so say the rest.”
Tilly exhaled hard. “Savannah, I’m tired. I’m tired of guessing what you want from me.”
Her heart skipped a beat. “I don’t want anything from you.”
