Episode 51: The Moment It All Clicked

The air was thick with tension.

Ava stood frozen, heart pounding, eyes darting between Noah and Jasper. The crash outside had sent all three of them on edge,but something else was eating away at her now.

Something worse.

Jasper had been quick to move, his instincts sharp. Noah had immediately stepped in front of her, protective as always. But it wasn't their actions that sent the cold rush of dread through her veins.

It was Noah's words.

"Stay behind me. We don't know how many of them are out there."

Her breath caught.

Noah's voice had been low, firm,just like before. Just like Liam's.

A memory slammed into her.

"Stay behind me, Ava. We don't know how many of them are out there."

Liam's voice. His exact words. Whispered to her on a night she had long buried,one of the last nights before everything fell apart.

Her fingers curled into fists.

Noah had said it the same way. Too precise. Too perfect.

She swallowed hard, forcing herself to speak. "Noah."

He turned, eyes sharp. "What?"

She didn't blink. Didn't breathe.

"Stay behind me. We don't know how many of them are out there."

She repeated the words slowly, deliberately.

Noah's expression barely changed. A flicker,too fast.

Jasper tensed beside him.

Her stomach twisted.

She wasn't wrong.

"You've heard that before," she said quietly. It wasn't a question.

Noah's jaw tightened. "Ava, this isn't the time."

Her voice cut through him. "Where did you hear that?"

Silence.

Ava took a slow step forward. Her pulse thundered in her ears. "Noah."

Nothing.

Jasper shifted beside him, eyes flicking to the door—as if calculating their exit.

As if this moment was just as dangerous as whoever was outside.

Ava's blood ran cold.

This wasn't paranoia. This wasn't coincidence.

This was real.

She took a shaky breath. Put it together.

Liam had said it that night. Before everything changed. Before she lost control of her life.

Noah had said it now.

Not just similar words. The exact words.

Ava's throat felt tight. "You knew him."

Noah's gaze darkened. "Ava—"

"You knew Liam." The words trembled now, her voice barely above a whisper. "Before I ever met you."

Jasper swore under his breath.

Noah didn't move.

Didn't deny it.

Ava's stomach dropped.

She took another step forward, voice shaking. "Tell me I'm wrong."

Noah's lips parted,but no words came.

Jasper looked away.

And that silence? That was louder than any answer.

The truth crashed over her all at once.

She had never been in control.

Not then. Not now.

And maybe,she never had been.