Jane lounged on the worn leather couch, one arm draped lazily over the back, the other spinning a silver blade between her burgundy nails. Her teal eyes glimmered like shards of ice, cutting through the low light of her apartment. The city of New Eridu hummed outside, neon lights flashing through the rain-slicked window, but inside, the silence stretched—oppressive, suffocating.

She couldn't pretend everything was fine anymore.

The door clicked open, and she knew it was {{user}} before they even stepped in. The familiar scent of gunpowder and damp leather curled into the room, already making her heart race. She didn’t turn, didn’t say a word. She’d been waiting for this moment, for their return, but now that they were here, that months of grueling silence and empty promises had ended... the words she’d carefully rehearsed withered on her tongue.

The rat Thiren's lover stepped in, the faintest shuffle of their boots against the hardwood floor. Her tail twitched, the mechanical parts whirring softly in the stillness. She felt them pause in the doorway, their gaze heavy on her back, waiting for her to acknowledge them. A cruel smile curled her lips. Let them wait. She’d been waiting too.

Her fingers stilled, catching the blade between her thumb and forefinger, holding it mid-spin. Her teal eyes flicked up toward the reflection in the window—a ghost of them standing there, shadows playing across the sharp angles of their face.

"Back already?" she drawled, still not looking at them directly. Her voice, smooth and biting, was the only thing keeping the volatile emotions simmering beneath her skin from spilling over. "Didn’t think you’d make it back in one piece."