After dinner, we found ourselves in my room. The air was soft, still carrying a faint trace of her perfume and the warmth of the food we'd shared. Val was sitting cross-legged on the edge of my bed, scrolling through something on her phone while I leaned against the desk, pretending to fix the lamp that didn't need fixing.
"So…" I finally said, breaking the quiet. "How long are you staying before you have to go back?"
She looked up immediately, her smile still lingering from earlier. "A week."
A week.
I tried not to let my face fall, but judging by the way her eyes softened, she caught it.
"I'm not exactly on break yet," she said quickly, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "I just… kind of slipped out."
I raised an eyebrow. "Slipped out?"
She shrugged, grinning. "Let's just say my dad thinks I'm in the guesthouse studying."
