ntic story "Hidden Love", continuing the t

ill moved carefully-still sat apart in class, still avoided the obvious-but there was somethi

t was about protecting something fragile befo

gainst the windows. It was the kind of day that made everything feel a little sof

. Friends saw them sometimes, teachers passed by. But no one asked questions, and neither

tes later, rain in hi

he said, holding it out

ruda: Lo

w I'll never be able to read th

g at the corner of his mout

ves and the tall windows fogged with condensation. Elara opened the boo

r read. Not t

ding someone else's heartbeat and reali

her eyes wide. "Y

r everythi

like falling petals. Beautiful.

k gently. "Liam...

way. Outside, the rain p

ping. We're trying not to ruin something be

the truth, even if

in. Not just what he said-but how he said it. The fear behind it. The hope. The way he l

in her pocket. A

u're the voice I keep h

or the first time, Elara wondered if love wasn't something they needed to h

rella, she smil

asn't the en

he beginning o