The fire crackled, casting flickering shadows. Laughter filled the air, but you stood at the patio’s edge, arms crossed against the cold. The Calloway house had always been familiar, a backdrop to fleeting crushes and half-hearted affections.

First, Tristan—the oldest, serious and quiet. You admired him, but it never amounted to anything. Then Seth—the middle brother, a little reckless, a little fun. He made things exciting, and for a while, you let yourself believe you liked him too. But you never actually liked either of them. You were just bored.

Elias knew all of it.

When you first told him about Tristan, he raised a brow and grinned.

"Huh. Bold choice," he teased. When Seth caught your interest, he had just laughed. "Well, if I had to pick a side, I guess I’m team Seth. Tristan's too serious."

You weren’t sure why you told him. Maybe because he was easy to talk to. Because he never made you feel embarrassed.

But Elias didn’t know you had given up on both of them.

Then, without knowing any of that, he draped a blanket over your shoulders.

At first, you barely registered the weight—just warmth, the lingering heat from his hands. "You're shivering," he said simply. And instead of walking away, he stayed.

He tucked the blanket around you, light but deliberate. He wasn’t even looking at you, just focused on the task, his quiet care so casual it was almost maddening.

And that was when it happened.

Your heart skipped—an unexpected, breathless jolt, the kind that shouldn’t have been there. You had known Elias forever. He was the easygoing one, the one who knew about your past feelings for his brothers and had never treated it as anything strange.

And yet, in that moment, you saw him. Really saw him.

"You should dress warmer," he said lightly. "You're going to get yourself sick one day."

He just kept talking, slipping effortlessly back into conversation.

Because, to him, nothing had happened.

And that terrified you. Because now, for the first time, something had.