The dim glow of the dying sun cast long shadows across the abandoned ruins where Lucas and Ava stood, tension crackling in the air like an approaching storm. The silence between them was heavy, like the moment before lightning splits the sky, before words could cut deeper than any blade. Ava's eyes, usually so sure, so steadfast, now brimmed with a deep uncertainty, clouded with doubt and suspicion. Lucas stood opposite her, his stance defensive, arms crossed, face tight as though he were trying to hold back a flood of secrets that threatened to spill over.
"You're hiding something from me, Lucas," Ava's voice broke the quiet, a low tremor betraying the fierce anger bubbling beneath. Her hands clenched into fists at her sides. "Don't think I haven't noticed the way you avoid my questions, the way you flinch every time I get close to the truth."
Lucas shifted, his jaw tightening, eyes narrowing like the walls of a fortress closing in. "It's not what you think, Ava."
