“I know,” I whispered. “But I’m scared.”
“If we react too quickly, we might hurt her,” he added carefully.
That stayed with me.
So I decided not to react.
I decided to find the truth first.
That evening, dinner felt different. It was still loud, still chaotic—but I wasn’t part of it the same way.
I was watching.
Lily barely spoke. Noah kept glancing at her. Maya went quiet when I entered.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“Nothing,” Maya replied too quickly.
But the silence that followed told me everything—this wasn’t just about Lily. It involved all of them.
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