Chapter 23: Leaving Warmth Behind
Lyra folded her clothes carefully,even though she didn't need to.
The sweater her aunt had insisted she buy—soft,pale,unfamiliar—sat on top of her suitcase like a question she hadn't answered yet.She paused,fngers resting on the fabric,then left it there.
Her cousin hovered in the doorway, arms crossed dramatically. "You're really going?"
Lyra smiled. "I'll be back."
"When?"
"Soon," she said, and meant it.
He frowned anyway,then hugged her leg without warning,shee stiffened for half a second—then relaxed,resting her hand on his hair.
Her aunt watched from the kitchen,pretending not to.
"You don't have to rush back," her aunt said later,handing her a plastic container of food. "School will still be there."
Lyra took it. "I know. But… so will I."
Her aunt studied her for a long moment. "You're changing."
Lyra swallowed. "Is that bad?"
"No," her aunt said gently. "Just don't disappear into it."
The bus ride back felt longer.
The closer they got to campus,the quieter Lyra became,she watched familiar buildings replace corner stores and family houses. The warmth she'd wrapped herself in over the past few days slowly loosened its grip.
She pulled out her notebook.
Dear Stranger,
I'm on my way back. Part of me wants to stay where everything is simple and loud and warm. Another part of me feels like I'm walking toward something unfinished.
She hesitated, then added:
I don't know which part of me is braver.
She closed the notebook as the bus slowed.
Campus greeted her with its usual noise—laughter,footsteps,movement—but something felt… off,not hostile not aware.
Talia practically tackled her outside the dorm. "You're back! I survived, but barely."
Lyra laughed, hugging her. "Miss me already?"
"Obviously. Also—people were asking about you."
Lyra's smile faltered. "Asking what?"
Talia shrugged. "Just… noticing. You know how rumors breathe."
Lyra nodded slowly.
She went up to their room, unpacked, and sat on her bed longer than necessary. Her heart beat faster than it should have.
She hadn't seen him yet.
She found him by accident.
The library doors were open, light spilling out into the early evening. Kael stood just inside, alone, hands in his pockets, gaze lifted the moment she stepped closer—as if he'd felt her return.
"You're back," he said.
"I am."
A pause.
"You look… different," he added quietly.
She touched the sleeve of her sweater. "My aunt's doing."
He nodded, something unreadable flickering in his eyes. "It suits you."
Silence settled between them—not awkward, just full.
"You were safe?" he asked.
"Yes."
He exhaled, tension easing slightly from his shoulders. "Good."
She hesitated. "You told me to be careful of people."
"I still mean it."
"Even you?"
His lips curved faintly. "Especially me."
Before she could respond, voices echoed from down the hall—Cassian's laugh, Julien's low murmur.
Kael straightened instinctively.
"I'll see you around, Lyra," he said.
She watched him disappear deeper into the library shadows, heart thudding—not with fear.
With certainty.
That night, back in her dorm, Lyra opened her notebook one last time.
Dear Stranger,
I came back. And somehow, that feels like a choice—not a habit. Whatever waits here, I'm done pretending I don't feel it.
She closed the notebook, placed it under her pillow, and lay back.
Tomorrow, she knew, things would start to shift.
And this time—
She wouldn't stay invisible.