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Chapter 39: The Lies We Tell Honestly
The morning fog rolled in thicker than usual.
It softened the village's edges—turned rooftops to shadows, paths to whispers. Matteo liked it. The world felt wrapped, undefined, like a sketch still waiting for ink.
He met Lina outside her room with bread, honey, and figs. No words. Just a smile that asked: Walk with me?
She nodded.
---
They climbed the northern cliffs in silence, a path carved into rock by goats and time.
At the top, they sat. Just them, the wind, and a sea that didn't care what either of them carried.
"I want to know something real," Lina said.
Matteo looked at her, eyebrows raised. "I've been real."
"You've been kind. And funny. And thoughtful. But not real. Not the part of you that aches."
Matteo hesitated.
Then nodded.
"Ask."
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And so she did.
> "Have you ever loved someone you couldn't save?"
"Yes."
> "Have you ever hated what made you powerful?"
"Every day."
> "Have you ever been so tired you forgot your name?"
"Once. I liked the silence."
> "Who are you when no one needs anything from you?"
"Still figuring that out."
---
Then he turned it around.
> "What did you lose that you never speak of?"
"A sister. Not by blood. But by choice."
> "What do you regret not becoming?"
"An oceanographer. I still dream of swimming deeper than sound."
> "When did you last lie?"
pause "Yesterday."
> "What did you lie about?"
"That I sleep well."
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Matteo laughed softly. "You're good at this."
"I was trained to ask questions," Lina said, half-true. "The kind that make people tell stories."
"Professional listener?"
"Something like that."
---
They spent the afternoon painting each other's faces with berry juice and charcoal.
They drank cold white wine.
They slow-danced barefoot to music that only existed between their feet.
And when night came, and they lay tangled in salt and warmth and breath, Matteo whispered:
"You make it easy to forget the world."
And Lina, eyes closed against his shoulder, said:
"I wish I didn't have to make you forget."
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The next morning, Lina walked alone to the far side of the island.
There, on the beach, she opened her communicator.
> Incoming message: PHASE TWO
Target's behavioral sync complete.
Execute financial protocol during scheduled sunset walk.
She stared at the text.
Then did something reckless.
She opened her sketchpad, tore out the page with Matteo's hands, and burned it in the wind.
Not because she was finished with him.
But because she wasn't sure what was still real.
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Back in the village, Matteo found her sandals at his door.
No note.
Just presence.
A promise he didn't yet know would break him.
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End of Chapter 39