Jayden lay awake, his mind racing with thoughts of Penelope. The memory of their last conversation in the car still lingered, the unspoken tension between them palpable.
His mind was a whirlwind of thoughts, a persistent buzzing beneath the surface that kept him from sleep. He was a guest in this house, a stranger in uncharted territory, but yet he found himself wrestling with a turmoil that felt intimately his own.
Then…
Knock. Knock.
A gentle rap at the door startled him, a quiet sound that nonetheless cut through the stillness of the night.
"Jayden? Are you still awake?" Penelope's voice, a low, melodic hum, drifted through the wood.
Jayden eyes widened. He hadn't expected her. "Yes, I am," he managed, his voice a little rough. He swung his legs off the bed, his heart already beginning a nervous, erratic beat as he padded across the cool floorboards.
He opened the door a crack, then wider… and his breath hitched.
