That matters.
“You’re early,”she says.
“I’m always early.”
“Stalker.”
“Protector.”
She smiles.
And yeah—
That’s exactly what I am.
Blaze is still touching things.
“I told you not to touch,” she says.
“I’m expanding my skill set.”
“You don’t have one here,” she fires back.
Trigger laughs.
Beast almost smiles.
The shop is full.
Color.
Life.
Everything she rebuilt.
Everything she fought for.
And she’s standing in the middle of it.
Like she owns it.
Because she does.
“You’re staring again,” she says.
“Can’t help it.”
She looks at me.
“Why?”
“Because I get to.”
She smiles.
Soft.
Real.