Happen
Three days had passed.
Three days since the summit.
Three days since the car pulled up to her apartment.
Three days since Lucas said, “You’re safe.”
And “I’m glad you did.”
She hadn’t seen him since.
Hadn’t heard from him.
Hadn’t dared to reach out.
She’d buried herself in work—quiet tasks, back-end reports, logistics that didn’t require face-to-face interaction. She’d kept her head down, avoided the executive wing, and told herself it was better this way. That maybe she’d imagined the whole thing. That maybe he’d already forgotten.
She was halfway down the corridor outside the archive room when she heard footsteps—two sets, steady and familiar.
She didn’t look up right away.
But when she did, her breath caught.
Lucas.
And beside him—Riven.
They were mid-conversation, something about a systems audit, Riven gesturing casually while Lucas walked with that same composed stride. He wasn’t looking around. He wasn’t scanning the hallway. He was just… there.
And then he saw her.
His steps slowed.
His gaze locked.
And for a moment, the hallway felt too narrow.
Elara froze.
She hadn’t prepared for this.
Hadn’t rehearsed what she’d say.
Hadn’t expected to see him here—not like this, not so suddenly.
Riven noticed first.
“Elara,” he said, surprised. “Didn’t know you were on this floor.”
She nodded, voice caught somewhere between her throat and her chest.
“Just dropping off the archive logs.”
Lucas didn’t speak.
But his eyes didn’t leave her.
Riven glanced between them, then cleared his throat. “We’re heading to the systems wing. Lucas wanted to review the new security protocols.”
Lucas still didn’t speak.
Elara clutched the folder tighter. “I won’t keep you.”
She turned slightly, ready to step aside, but Lucas finally said something—quiet, low, and meant only for her.
“You’re okay?”
She looked up.
His voice wasn’t casual.
It wasn’t distant.
It was the same voice from the summit.
The same voice that had steadied her when she couldn’t breathe.
She nodded. “I’m fine.”
He didn’t move.
Didn’t smile.
Just watched her like he was trying to read something she hadn’t written.
Riven shifted beside him, clearly sensing something he didn’t understand.
“We should go,” he said gently.
Lucas nodded once, but his gaze lingered.
And then—he walked past her.
No touch.
No words.
Just a glance that stayed too long.
Elara stood there long after they’d gone, folder still in hand, heart still loud.
Her thoughts were a mess.
She didn’t know what he felt.
She didn’t know if she was imagining everything.
But seeing him again—just for a moment—made something inside her soften. She missed him.
She wanted to see him.
And now, she knew it.