Chapter 16

Pearl wasn't always brave with words spoken aloud.

But with paper, she could be.

It was a quiet morning, the library still empty except for the hum of the fans and the faint smell of old books. Sharon was late, as usual, so Pearl sat at their usual table, tapping her pen, her heart beating too loud in the hush.

She wanted him to know how she felt. Not just about the kiss, but about them. About the warmth he brought into her life, about the way she felt seen, about how, with him, she didn't have to be "Pearl Vortex, everyone's clown" all the time.

So she took a deep breath, pulled a small piece of peach-colored paper from her pencil case, and began to write:

**"Sharon,

You make the quiet feel safe.

You make me feel like I don't have to be loud to be loved.

I don't know what this is yet, but I know I don't want it to stop.

Thank you for seeing me, even on the days I hide behind laughter.

— Star ✨"**

Her hands trembled as she folded the note carefully, pressing it flat, adding a tiny star doodle in the corner. She slipped it between the pages of his sketchbook, the one he always left in his bag on the chair next to her.

She sat there for a moment, staring at the bag, her heart pounding. A small, shy smile crept onto her lips before she stood, tucking her own books away quietly.

Just as she reached the library door, she glanced back one last time, the soft morning light catching on the empty chair where he would sit, where he would find her words.

Let him find it when he's ready, she told herself, stepping into the hallway, the soft clack of her shoes echoing around her.

Later that day, when Sharon arrived and flipped open his sketchbook, the note slipped into his lap. He picked it up, unfolding it slowly, eyes tracing every word, every small hesitation she had folded into those lines.

A smile broke across his face, gentle, real, as he pressed the note to his chest for a moment, closing his eyes.

"Star," he whispered, like a promise, like a prayer, like something warm he would keep safe.

And in that moment, everything between them grew a little brighter.