{ they are back / with Inessa }
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One thing Hayes never does is look at his phone the moment he wakes up, but today was different. He could barely sleep last night, hoping that things would be different when the new day comes, hoping his friends, sister will be back. The faint glow of his phone screen illuminating the darkened room. His eyes, tired, adjusted to the harsh light as he blinked at the last thing he had done before trying to fall asleep.
The text was still there. Still unread. Still unanswered.
He exhaled sharply through his nose, running a hand down his face as he let the phone slip from his grip onto the bed. He wasn’t even sure what he expected… what answer he thought might suddenly appear overnight. He had sent it with the vague hope that maybe, just maybe, there would be something. A sign. A response. Anything. But Lenore did not answer, Inessa did not answer.
The silence stretched on, just as it had the day before. His fingers curled around the sheets as he stared up at the ceiling, trying to push back the nagging, uneasy feeling that had settled in his chest since yesterday. He had spent the day watching, listening, waiting for something to shift, for someone to acknowledge what was going on. But as expected, no one had given him a straight answer… They never did. A part of him wanted to skip class. Wanted to ignore the whole thing and pretend none of it mattered. But he knew better than that. He knew how this school worked. So, with a deep breath Hayes pushed himself up.
By the time he got dressed and stepped into the hallway, the world had begun to blur into the usual dull routine… The same corridors, the same distant murmurs of students already awake but suddenly something felt different. Everything went quiet as if everyone was shocked by something that happened and he could see why that was… Hayes slowed his pace, his gaze sharpening as he turned a corner and stopped. There, standing in the hallway, as if she had never been gone was Inessa. For a moment, Hayes just stood there, his breath catching in his throat… They are back. But something wasn’t right. Her posture, the way she held herself - dazed, like someone who had just woken up from a dream they weren’t quite ready to leave. His fingers twitched at his sides, unsure for the first time in a long while of what to do. There was a familiar pull, an urge to close the space between them, to reach out and touch her, just to confirm she was real.
So he moved. His hand shot out before he even registered what he was doing, fingers wrapping around her wrist in a firm, almost desperate grip. ”Ness,“ his voice came out sharp, low and he didn’t loosen his hold. She barely had time to react before he was pulling her, dragging her away from the murmuring students, from the curious glances. He walked quickly, not letting go of her wrist. Maybe it was too rough, but right now, he didn’t care. Only when they slipped inside an empty classroom, the door slamming shut behind them, did he finally let go. And then… before he could stop himself, before he could think, before logic could kick in he hugged her. It wasn’t careful. It wasn’t slow. It wasn’t even something he planned. One second he was standing there, breathing too fast, staring at her like she might vanish again and the next his arms were around her, pulling her close.
He felt the tension but he didn’t let go. He didn’t trust his voice yet… Didn’t trust what might come out if he spoke too soon. He just breathed her in. And then, just as quickly as it happened, he pulled away. Not far, but enough. Enough to see her face, enough to feel the absence of warmth in the space between them. Hayes cleared his throat, forcing himself to focus, to pull himself together. ”What the hell happened?“ His voice wasn’t as steady as he wanted it to be. It came out rough, edged with something he refused to name.
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