Page 59 of Trade It All

The house is quiet.

Not the kind of quiet that feels empty, but the kind that settles in late at night when everything finally slows down, when Addy and Luka have gone to bed and the only sound left is the soft hum of the air and the occasional shift of the house settling.

I should be asleep.

We leave in the morning. Early.

The kind of early that usually has me double-checking gear, charging batteries, making sure I have everything I need so I don’t miss a single moment once we’re on the road.

Instead—I’m staring at the ceiling.

Wide awake.

Again.

My phone rests on my chest, screen dark, even though I’ve picked it up at least five times in the last ten minutes, debating whether or not to text him. I don’t. Not because I don’t want to… but because I know if I do, I won’t sleep at all.

And I need to.

At least that’s what I keep telling myself.

Tomorrow.

Tyler leaves tomorrow.

The thought should bring relief.

Closure.

Something that feels like the end of all of this. Instead, it just sits there.

Heavy.

Because a part of me doesn’t trust it.

Doesn’t trust that he’ll just go quietly, that everything he started with those boxes and that note will disappear the second he’s gone.

I shift slightly, turning onto my side, pulling the blanket up higher even though I’m not cold.

I thought I saw him the other day. Outside the arena.

It was quick. A glance. A feeling more than anything solid. Someone standing just far enough away that I couldn’t makeout details, but close enough that something in me tightened instantly.

I almost went after it. Almost convinced myself I wasn’t imagining it.

But then Jasper caught up with me, falling into step beside me like he always does when he knows I’m about to get stuck in my own head.

“Perk It Up?” he asked, like it was the most normal thing in the world.

And I went.

Because saying yes felt easier than turning around and chasing something I wasn’t even sure was real.

I didn’t realize what I was agreeing to.

Because going to Perk It Up with Jasper apparently means sitting at a table while he pretends he’s not watching the new girl behind the counter like she’s the only thing in the room.

It took me all of thirty seconds to catch on.