Ashen doesn't return to the house after leaving Kyle's apartment.
He walks without purpose, without direction, his mind a storm, trying to put his state of mind in a right place.
What did he do?! He shouldn't have touched the phone. Shouldn't have responded. Shouldn't have said anything at all.
He ruined everything, maybe Kyle had started to trust him even if he didn't show it, but he ruined that, he ruined his career.
Kyle's words refuse to leave his mind, they aren't just an echo, they pulse through his head like a second heartbeat, relentless and loud. Every sentence sharpens, digging deeper into his chest.
"You don't know what love is."
"You're a child."
"I would never."
He drifts further, shoes slipping over damp grass, until the trees begin to thin. He keeps going, not because he knows where he's headed, but because he knows it has to be far, far away to some place he can be alone and collect himself.
