I turned back to the pool table, gripping the edge. Jason stepped closer.
“Do you want to leave? We can go somewhere else.”
I shook my head.
“No. It’s fine.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah.”
I took a deep breath and tried to steady myself. My heart was beating faster than normal, but I wasn’t falling apart.
We continued our game, though my hands trembled slightly on the cue stick. Every few minutes, I felt the pull to glance over my shoulder. And when I did, they were still there—laughing, talking, leaning in.
It wasn’t jealousy. Not the ugly kind, anyway. It wasn’t anger. It wasn’t even longing. It was something else. Something quieter. A reminder. A confirmation. A final, irrevocable closing of a door I’d already walked through.
Jason watched me closely.
“You’re being weirdly calm,” he murmured.
I snorted.
“Should I be flipping tables?”
“Honestly? I was prepared to yank you out of here.”
I shook my head again.
“No. It’s okay.”
And in a way I didn’t expect, it really was.
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