There were only two days left on Luna's contract.
I caught myself humming at my desk that afternoon—the first time in weeks.Not because work was easy. Just… lighter.
Then Daniel's message appeared:
I'll get off early today. Let's have dinner at your place.
I stared at the screen and smiled.
Okay. I'll cook.
Looking forward to it.
Something warm and solid settled in my chest.
I left the office earlier than I had in months. I didn't rush. I didn't check my phone. Even the air felt easier to breathe.
At the supermarket, I moved as if following a private ritual.
Ribs—he liked them charred at the edges.Beef for stir-fry. Plump shrimp.Basil, mint, a knob of ginger.A small container of pickled vegetables he'd once mentioned.That almond cake from the bakery he'd pointed out months ago.
I bought too much. I didn't care.
The evening arranged itself clearly in my mind:
Clear soup first.Then the ribs, sizzling in the pan.Dessert with tea. Just us.
A normal night. A real one.
As if the last month had been a fog I was finally stepping out of.
This was my home.This was my fiancé.
In forty-eight hours, every borrowed thing would be returned.
—
I reached the door, my palms striped red from the weight of the grocery bags.
I thought—faintly—that Luna would be in her room by now. She always made herself scarce when Daniel visited. Careful. Polite.
The key turned.
For a second, I even felt it—the quiet, warm thrill of arriving where I belonged.
The door swung open.
I didn't take in the room.Only the center of it.
Daniel and Luna.
His hand cradled the back of her neck.The other was tight around her waist—possessive, effortless.
Not a stolen touch.Not a hesitant grab.
An embrace that looked lived-in. Habitual.
Then he leaned down—
and kissed her.