The forest is quiet in that unnatural way I have learned to recognize. It is the kind of silence that feels shaped by intention rather than nature. Cold. Observing. As if the trees themselves are holding their breath, waiting for something to snap.
Adrian stands across from me, his eyes bright with the same poison that has stained every part of our history. We circle each other slowly, the air charged with old rage and something far older than that. The memories that never died. The scars neither of us ever let heal.
He leans close enough that I can feel his breath against my ear. His voice is a whisper meant only for me.
“You always thought you were better.”
The words stir something primal inside me. Not shock. Not anger. Simply confirmation. I have spent my life being the thing he ha
