The gallery buzzed with quiet chatter as townsfolk wandered through the newly opened exhibit, a mix of local talent and Ava's curated pieces. Max hovered near one of Ava's paintings one he hadn't seen before. It was abstract, like most of her recent work, but something about it unsettled him: sharp edges, stormy blues, a single figure walking into fog.
"She painted that after her mom died," said a voice beside him.
Max turned to see a man around his age,tall, confident, with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.
"I'm Jesse," the man said, extending a hand. "Old friend. And… more than that, once."
Max shook his hand, cautious. "Max. I'm—"
"I know who you are." Jesse glanced at the painting again. "She doesn't let many people in, you know. Not really. She builds walls with paint and silence. I spent years trying to climb them."
There was no malice in Jesse's tone, just memory.
Max looked back at the painting. "Did you?"
"Almost. But almost doesn't count."
Ava appeared a moment later, cheeks flushed from the crowd and the spotlight. Her eyes flicked between the two men, and something in her body stilled.
"Jesse," she said, voice low but composed. "Didn't know you'd be here."
"I heard you were showing again. I wanted to see what you've been creating." His gaze softened. "It's beautiful, Ava. You always were."
She smiled politely. "Thank you."
Jesse nodded, gave Max a final glance curious, measuring then melted back into the crowd.
For a moment, Max didn't speak. Neither did Ava.
"Want to get out of here?" she asked.
He nodded.
They walked in silence until they reached the dock. The night air was crisp, the moon a sliver in the sky.
"Jesse was part of a different chapter," she finally said. "One where I was trying to be what everyone needed before I learned how to be what I needed."
Max nodded slowly. "Do you still think about him?"
"I think about who I was with him. How much I let myself shrink. He loved me in a way that felt like possession, not partnership."
"And me?"
She turned to face him, her hand finding his. "You don't ask me to be anything. You just… see me. And I don't have to hide."
Max smiled faintly. "Good. Because I don't want to rewrite your past. I just want to be part of your now."
She leaned into him, her voice barely a whisper. "Then stay."