{Elira}
~**^**~
~SUNDAY~
The sound of my heartbeat woke me before the sun did.
I lay still for a long moment, staring at the faint silver glow leaking through the blinds, willing the knot in my stomach to ease, but it didn't work.
I pushed myself up slowly, careful not to disturb the others. Nari was snoring softly, tangled in her blanket like a cocoon.
Juniper sprawled sideways, one arm dangling off the bed. Cambria slept perfectly still, as if even in her dreams she had discipline. And Tamryn—steady, breathing deep.
They didn't know the real truth about where I was going today.
I had told them yesterday that I would be going home, and I feigned the same casual tone I had used a dozen times before. They had blinked but let it pass, only extracting a promise that I would explain when I came back tomorrow.
But by then, everything could be different.
I slipped off the bunk and padded into the bathroom, my steps light on the cold floor.
