"I thought you didn't want to talk to me," Lilac whispered, her voice barely audible as she looked up at Stanley. Her eyes searched his face with cautious hope, her cheek resting against his chest as they lay curled together on the office couch.
Stanley tightened his arms around her, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead. "Lilac, I was dying to talk to you," he murmured. "I waited outside your place for hours... just in case you'd come out. But then—"
He paused, his jaw tensing as the guilt crept back in. His fingers traced idle patterns along her arm as he struggled for the right words.
"I should've considered your feelings before making that decision," he finally said, voice heavy with regret. "I was so caught up in fixing everything, in protecting you from the chaos, that I didn't realize I was stepping away from you when I should've been holding on tighter."
