Hospital Garden – 9:15 AM
Amara walked slowly across the paved path, new sketchpad in hand. The garden smelled of lavender and old stone.
Kael sat on the bench near the small fountain, head down, scribbling something into a folded notebook.
She approached, not sitting, just standing there.
"You left this yesterday." She handed him the sketch he forgot.
He took it without a word. Their fingers brushed.
"I don't know what any of this means anymore," he said finally.
"Then stop trying to define it," Amara said. "Let it be what it is."
He looked up.
And for the first time in days, they didn't look like ghosts to each other.
Hospital Cafeteria – 12:40 PM
Rin sat alone, stirring her tea.
Tasha slid into the seat across from her, raising a brow. "You sure you're not just letting him drift away?"
Rin didn't flinch. "If I have to hold him too tightly to keep him, then maybe I'm not holding him at all."
Tasha nodded. "Then what are you holding?"
"Space," Rin said. "For myself."