Chapter 28: Boxes and Silence
They didn't say goodbye.Just stopped standing in the same room.
It was my decision. Though I regretted it, more than anything.
Elias
The house felt quieter than usual.
Not silent.
Just... cautious.
Like it knew what was coming.
I carried the last box down the hallway, the one with her books.
The same ones I watched her stack and restack over the years.
I didn't comment when she labeled it "miscellaneous" in her shaky handwriting.
Alex was already waiting by the front door.
Her car was idling outside.
"She's almost ready," I said.
Alex nodded. "You okay?"
I didn't answer. Just tightened my grip on the box and walked past her.
We didn't talk much.
Didn't need to.
That made it worse.
Liana
I folded the last blanket, even though I knew Alex already had extras at her place.
My room looked wrong.
Empty walls.
No shoes by the door.
No books on the desk.
Just a mattress and the quiet.
I didn't cry.
I had no right to cry. I was the one who said I wanted to leave.
Elias didn't hover.
Didn't question.
He just waited in the hall, keys in hand, like he was trying not to break a rule.
"I'm ready," I said.
He just nodded.
The car ride to Alex's place was short. Half an hour.
We didn't play music. We didn't talk.
Alex drove. Elias sat in the passenger seat.
I sat in the back, watching the buildings blur past.
I kept thinking:
I can still say I changed my mind.
I can still go back.
He'll let me.
But I didn't say anything.
When we got there, Alex showed me the room.
It was small, cozy, neat. A desk by the window. Neutral walls. A soft rug.
Elias set the box down and stepped back.
He didn't walk further in.
Alex gave me a little smile. "I'll let you two talk."
She left.
And then it was just us.
Me, standing in the middle of a new room.
Him, at the edge of the doorway, like a guest in my life.
"You have everything?" he asked.
I nodded.
"I labeled your medications. They're in the bathroom cabinet."
"I know."
Silence.
I waited for him to say something. Anything.
He didn't.
And neither did I.
"I should get back," he said finally. "Let you settle in."
I nodded again.
He didn't hug me.
He didn't reach out.
He just stood there.
Then:
"If you need anything—"
"I know," I said quickly. "I will."
He looked at me for one long second.
Then left.
Liana
I stood at the window after he drove away.
Watched the truck disappear down the street.
And only then did I let out the breath I didn't know I was holding.
My hands were shaking.
Alex walked by the door with two mugs in her hands.
She didn't say anything. Just left one on the table near me.
"Chamomile," she said. "No pressure."
She walked away.
I sat on the edge of the bed.
Held the cup in both hands.
And whispered, to no one:
"Why does doing the right thing feel like falling apart?"
Elias
Back at the house, I left the door unlocked.
Stared at the room she used to be in.
It was quiet.
Too quiet.
It had been quiet before—
But not like this.
Her door was open.
The bookshelf was half-empty.
The blanket on her chair still smelled like lavender.
I didn't close the door.
Just stood there, staring into the empty room.
Then I sat in the kitchen.
Two plates on the kitchen island—out of habit.
And one chair that was empty.
Maybe always would be.
What have I done?