It starts small.
Too small to name at first.
Zane stands a little further away during rehearsal.
He doesn't lean in when he talks to me.
Doesn't brush my shoulder when he passes.
Doesn't text late at night.
He's still kind.
Still focused.
Still professional.
Just—
Less.
And I feel it immediately.
Like a missing harmony line.
At lunch the other day, we all sat at the long table near the window.
Laura and Theo discussing logistics.
Zane talking about an arrangement change.
Me laughing at something Eli texted.
And Axel watching.
Not glaring.
Not angry.
Just watching.
Every time Zane leaned toward me slightly,
Axel's gaze would flicker.
When I looked up once—
I caught it.
He didn't look away.
Zane noticed too.
I know he did.
Because the next day,
he was distant.
—
I catch up to Axel as he leaves the studio one afternoon.
"Hey."
He slows slightly. "You heading this way?"
"Yeah."
We fall into step naturally.
The nearby park is quieter this time of day.
The trees throw long shadows across the path.
"You've been staring," I say bluntly.
Axel doesn't pretend not to understand.
"At him," I add.
He exhales slowly.
"I know."
"So?"
He stops walking.
Looks at me fully.
"You and Zane."
It's not accusatory.
Just factual.
I swallow. "What about it?"
He runs a hand through his hair.
"I'm not blind, Sunny."
I laugh lightly. "I didn't think you were."
He studies my expression carefully.
"I'm happy," he says quietly.
The words surprise me.
"For you."
That surprises me more.
"But," he continues.
There it is.
"But he has history."
I look down at the gravel path.
"I know."
"Do you?"
He doesn't sound angry.
He sounds worried.
"I've known him a long time," Axel says. "He used to be… reckless."
"With girls?"
Axel doesn't sugarcoat it. "Yeah."
The honesty stings.
"But that was years ago," he adds quickly. "He's different now."
"Then what's the problem?"
Axel's jaw tightens slightly.
"The problem is you."
I blink.
"Excuse me?"
"You're not built for casual," he says.
My chest tightens.
"You care deeply. You commit fully. And if he treats you like a stop on a tour—"
"He won't," I interrupt.
"You don't know that."
"You don't either."
Silence settles between us.
We reach a park bench and sit down.
The same park.
The same kind of golden light.
Only this time I'm not leaning on him.
"I don't want you to get hurt," Axel says softly.
The tone changes everything.
Not protective in a controlling way.
Protective in a please don't break way.
"You're my sister," he says quietly.
The words land deep.
"You were fourteen when we found you. You were—"
"Small?" I supply gently.
"Yeah."
I smile faintly.
"I'm not fourteen anymore."
"I know."
"Then trust me."
He looks at me.
Really looks at me.
I move closer on the bench and wrap my arms around him.
He hugs me back instantly.
No hesitation.
"I appreciate that you care," I murmur against his shoulder.
"I always will."
"But I'm not a kid," I continue softly. "I've grown."
He nods once against my hair.
"I can make adult decisions."
"I know."
"And if I get hurt?"
He pulls back slightly.
"I'll be here."
The simplicity of that nearly makes me tear up.
I laugh instead.
"You're impossible."
"Yeah."
We sit there a moment longer.
Peaceful.
Steady.
When we stand again, something feels resolved.
Not erased.
But understood.
—
The next day in the studio, Zane keeps his distance again.
But this time—I understand why.
It's not him I'm unsure about.
It's the space between all of us.
And how carefully we're stepping around it.