Chapter 39

By the time they got back to their dorm, the sun was beginning to set, casting long shadows across the room. The air inside was warm and carried the faint smell of herbs and spices. Q blinked, caught off guard to see Juliette at the tiny stovetop, stirring a pot with deliberate movements. The sight of her roommate cooking, her usually sharp features softened by concentration, was almost as strange as the day had been.

Q sat at the table, her hands resting on the smooth wood as she stared down at her fingers. Her nails were still slightly ragged despite her best efforts to clean them up since arriving at RAPS. She frowned at them, her thoughts swirling.

"Today was weird," she said aloud, more to herself than to Juliette. "Very weird."

Juliette didn't respond. She kept stirring, her back straight and shoulders squared in that annoyingly perfect posture she always carried herself with.