Last night

The morning light seeped through the curtains, casting a soft golden glow across the room. The faint hum of the city waking up in the distance mixed with the rhythmic ticking of the wall clock.

Nova stirred, his body felt heavy but not in the same suffocating way as last night. It was the kind of weight that firmly settled in himself.

His eyes blinked slowly, adjusting to the rays of the sun shining though the curtains.

He glanced at the clock, it was already seven in the morning. Didn't even realize how he had fallen asleep last night.

"Shit." He muttered in a whisper, as he slowly recounted the events that happened last night.

He could still feel the ghost of yesterday's panic, the remnants of his fear clinging to the edges of his mind. But it wasn't choking him anymore which was good.

It was just… there. A part of him now. He has to just accept the fact that he was truly alive.

He inhaled deeply, his chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm. He was alive. The weight of that truth didn't feel as unbearable now.

Maybe it never would fully go away, but at least, for now, he could breathe.

A shift in the bed beside him made him glance to his side.

Sophia who was with him last night was surprisingly still beside him.

She was curled up slightly, her black hair fanning over the pillow, the oversized sweater she wore slightly slipping off her shoulder.

Her expression was relaxed, peaceful, completely unaware of the chaos she had helped him through last night.

Strands of raven-black hair framed her delicate features, cascading in soft waves against the sheets. Her skin, smooth and fair, caught the morning light, casting a faint glow across her face.

Long, dark lashes rested gently against her cheeks, contrasting with the natural pink of her soft, unguarded lips and ever so slightly parted in sleep.

There was an effortless elegance to her, a beauty that didn't demand attention but captivated nonetheless.

Nova let out a quiet breath, his gaze lingering on her as he savored her sleeping face.

He hadn't expected her to stay. He hadn't expected her presence to make a difference. But it did and for the first time in two days, he had actually rested.

A small, unexpected warmth settled in his chest as his lips parted to a warm smile.

Then his mind snapped.

- Sophia Montagua. 19. Daughter of Andreno Montagua, President Director of Stara Casinos.

A bunch of words appeared in his mind again, there was no voice or any kind of text. Simply words that felt as if it was his own thoughts to begin with.

Bits and pieces of information flooded in. Cut-out paragraphs, fragments of moments in her life, floating in the void of his consciousness.

-A child standing in a grand room, listening to hushed arguments behind closed doors.

-A teenage girl in an empty house, staring at a phone that never rang.

-A determined smile as she swung a baseball bat in an underground betting ring, the sound of cheers in the background.

Nova exhaled sharply, blinking away his imagination of the messy and incomplete snippets of stories, like a book with missing pages. He had expected it this time, but it still left him a little dazed.

His ability… It let him read people… or something like that.

And just like before, it just pops out in his mind, more like a memory or a bunch of sentences that contains personal pieces of life. He could see her story, the glimpses of her past, the things that made her who she was.

Sophia shifted slightly in her sleep, her brow furrowing just the slightest before relaxing again.

Nova let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding.

After a few seconds, more fragments of Sophia's story unfolded, as if the more he focused on someone, the clearer their story became.

-A young Sophia met a boy, one year younger than her.

-The boy protecting her from others.

-The constant subtle caring gazes.

-The way he always noticed when she was around, even when she tried to blend into the background.

-The way he tossed snacks in her direction without looking, somehow always landing them perfectly in her hands.

-The way he never looked afraid, never even hesitated, no matter who he was standing against.

Nova's eyebrows were slowly turning to furrow.

His fingers twitched as he read, his pulse steady but unnervingly loud in his ears as the pieces of Sophia's story layered themselves in his mind.

He inhaled sharply, his gaze flicking back to the girl still peacefully asleep beside him.

The details settled like a quiet weight in his chest. The constant subtle gazes. The unspoken awareness. The way he always knew when she was near, even if he didn't acknowledge it.

Nova blinked. His mind replayed the memories of them and the things he did not even remember doing. She had remembered all about him.

A quiet exhale left his lips. This was… kind of strange.

But his lips unknowingly curled into a smile. "Heh. Interesting."

Reading someone's story felt invasive but he was not going to let it hold him back.

And it just made him realize something.

She had her own battles and experience.

And last night, she had chosen to stay with him through his.

His lips twitched into a faint smirk as he leaned back against the pillow, staring at the ceiling ready to be lost in his thoughts until.

A soft yawn slipped from Sophia's lips.

Meanwhile, Nova adjusted his laying position to face her, his expression utterly unfazed. Then, with all the warmth of a lazy morning, he smiled.

"Morning, sunshine."

Sophia gawked at him. Her mouth slightly opened, then closed it and opened it again. Her brain had officially short-circuited.

"Did you sleep well?" he asked smoothly, his voice laced with amusement. "You seemed pretty comfy cuddling me all night. Even drooled a little…"

"I DID NOT!" she snapped, her face instantly turned a furious shade of red.

Her eyes wide as she took in the situation.

The bed. Last night. Him. Her. Together. Forever? No. No...

She shook her head, as if brushing away absurd thoughts, then lifted the blanket to check. A sigh of both relief and… disappointment? escaped her as she realized her clothes were still on.

Nova just chuckled seeing her expression, shifting to prop his head up slightly, his signature, infuriatingly charming grin still in place.

"Relax, I didn't take advantage of you or anything." He paused. "Yet…"

"Shut up!" Sophia threw a pillow at him.

Nova caught it with one hand, laughing. "Whoa, violent in the mornings, huh?"

Sophia groaned, gripping her head. "Nothing happened last night…"

Nova hummed, tilting his head. "There is, you insisted on staying with me. But you got all cozy. Honestly, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were taking advantage of me."

Sophia squeaked then shot him a glare.

"I WAS JUST WORRIED, YOU IDIOT!"

Nova smirked, his eyes half-lidded, utterly entertained. Then, without warning, he leaned in and pressed his lips against hers.

Sophia, caught off guard, instinctively tried to push him away, but her hands were pinned beneath the blanket.

As the kiss lingered, her resistance faded, and she slowly began to savor the moment.

After a few seconds, Nova just leaned back breaking the kiss with a smirk, enjoying her dazed expression.

"Thank you for being with me last night."