The knock came again.
Not loud. Just… gentle. Like he didn’t want to startle me.
“Hazel,” Levi’s voice was quiet. “I swear, I didn’t know.”
I sat curled up on the edge of the bed, my arm wrapped around my knees, and my other hand was flung across my forehead. My wound no longer stung badly and was already healing. But there was this dull throb of confusion and hurt in my head.
“I would’ve told you if I knew,” Levi said again, voice muffled by the door. “I’m not like that, Hazel. I mean—yeah, we’re triplets, I get that. But I’m not just one-third of a whole. I’m me. I just… I need you to see that.”
I swallowed hard, staring at the door like it might suddenly disappear and solve everything.
“Please,” he added, and that one word cracked something open in me. Not because of what he said, but how he said it. No attitude. No cockiness.
I stood slowly, feet brushing the cool tile floor, and crossed the room with hesitant steps. My fingers hovered over the handle for a second.
