Chapter 128 One twenty eight

Chapter 128 One twenty eight
Aria’s POV

I stepped fully into the dining area, the warmth of the space wrapping around me as the rich aroma of food lingered heavily in the air, and for a brief moment, everything felt almost too normal, like nothing unusual had ever happened, like the world had quietly reset itself overnight.

Katie turned the moment she noticed me, her expression softening instantly, and before I could even say anything, I closed the distance between us and slipped an arm around her in a light side hug.

“Good morning,” she said gently.

“Morning,” I replied, my voice calm, steady, though there was still a faint trace of something lingering beneath it that I couldn’t quite explain.

She pulled back slightly, her eyes immediately dropping to my arm, her brows knitting together with concern as she reached out carefully.

“How’s the wound from yesterday?” she asked, her tone shifting into something more attentive.

I followed her gaze briefly, then looked back at her and nodded.

“I’m fine,” I said simply.

And it wasn’t a lie. I was really fine.

But something about that realization felt strange in a way I didn’t want to think too deeply about.

Katie studied me for another second, like she was trying to decide whether to believe me or not, before she finally nodded and let it go.

“Okay,” she said.

I moved toward the table and took a seat beside her, my movements slow and controlled, while Damien sat opposite us, already settled, though something about him felt… distant.

I couldn’t explain it. He was right there.
Present. Yet not entirely.

The three of us began to eat, the quiet stretching across the table in a way that wasn’t exactly uncomfortable, but not entirely normal either.

Usually, Katie would say something.

Or Damien would.

Even if it was small.

But this time, the silence stayed. Thick in the air.

And though no one acknowledged it, it was there.

Sitting with us.

Between us. 

I kept my focus on my food, taking slow bites, the taste familiar yet somehow more intense than usual, like my senses were sharper, more aware, picking up on every little detail.

Across from me, Damien barely spoke.
He ate quietly, his movements mechanical at times, like his mind was somewhere else entirely, and I caught myself glancing at him more than once, trying to understand what was going on in his head.

But he didn’t look up. Didn’t meet my gaze.
And eventually, I stopped trying.The meal didn’t last long. It ended almost as quietly as it began.

Damien was the first to stand.

“I’m done,” he said simply.

His voice cut through the silence, calm but distant, and for a second, both Katie and I looked up at him.

Katie wiped her hands lightly before speaking.

“I’ll be going back home this morning,” she said.

He nodded.

Just a small, almost absent nod, like he had heard her but wasn’t fully present in the moment.

Something about that unsettled me.

But I pushed the thought away.

Maybe that was just how he was.
Always quite and reserved.

Lost in his own thoughts more often than not.

Without saying much else, he turned and headed upstairs, leaving the two of us behind.

I watched him go for a second longer than necessary before forcing myself to look away, shaking the feeling off as I focused back on the table.

“He’s just… like that sometimes,” I said lightly, more to myself than to Katie.

She didn’t respond immediately, but when I glanced at her, she gave a small nod, though her expression suggested she wasn’t entirely convinced either.

Still, neither of us said anything more.
A few minutes later, Damien came back down, his car keys in hand, his expression unreadable as he moved toward the door.
Katie was already done by then, standing up and smoothing her clothes slightly as she prepared to leave.

Damien walked over to me, and before I could react, he leaned down and pressed a soft peck against my forehead.

The gesture caught me slightly off guard, though I didn’t show it.

“I won’t waste time,” he mouthed.

I nodded.

“Okay,” I whispered back.

He straightened, and without another word, the two of them headed out.

I stayed where I was, listening as the front door opened, then closed, followed shortly by the faint sound of the car engine starting.

A few seconds later, I heard it drive off.

And just like that…

The house fell silent again.

I exhaled slowly, staring at the now empty space for a moment before finally pushing myself up from my seat.

The table needed clearing.

I moved quickly, gathering the plates, stacking them neatly as I carried them into the kitchen, my movements efficient, almost automatic, like I was trying to keep myself busy without thinking too much.

Within a short time, everything was clean.
Put away. In place.

And suddenly, I had nothing left to do.

The quiet returned.

Heavier this time.

I walked back into the living room and dropped onto the couch, grabbing the remote and turning on the TV, letting the noise fill the space even though I wasn’t really paying attention to what was playing.
A book rested beside me, and I picked it up, holding it loosely in my hands, flipping through a few pages without actually reading them.

My mind wasn’t there.

It kept drifting.

Back to the morning. To Damien's stiff behavior.

To the way he had been acting.

To the way everything felt slightly… off.

Time passed slowly.

At some point, I shifted on the couch, adjusting my position, the tiredness creeping into my body in a way that made me realize just how long I had been sitting there doing nothing.

I heard it.

The sound of a car pulling into the garage.
My head lifted slightly, my attention snapping toward the direction of the door as something inside me stirred.

He was back.

I didn’t move immediately.

I just sat there listening quietly.

The engine cut off.

A door closed.

Footsteps followed shortly after.
Then the front door creaked open.
My grip on the book tightened slightly without me realizing it.

A second later, he walked in.

He came straight toward me, his focus fixed, his expression serious in a way that immediately told me something had changed.

“How are you?” he asked looking calm as ever. As if he hasn't been stiff this morning.

Everything I had been holding in all this while came rushing to the surface. The stress , the distance and everything.

The thoughts I hadn’t allowed myself to fully process.

Before I could stop myself, I stood up and closed the distance between us, wrapping my arms around him tightly, holding on like I needed something solid to keep me grounded.

For a second, he seemed surprised.

But then his arms came around me too.

And he didn’t pull away.

I stayed there, holding him, letting the moment stretch, letting everything settle in the only way I knew how.

After a few seconds, I slowly pulled back, my hands dropping as I lifted my gaze to meet his.

Our eyes locked.

He spoke up.

“We need to talk.”