The soft glow of the pool lights shimmered across the water, casting golden reflections onto the walls of the penthouse terrace. Steam drifted lazily from the hot tub, curling around the edges of the tiled floor like breath in the cold.

Aaron was already there, his lean frame half-submerged in the bubbling water, arms stretched along the edge, head tipped back slightly. The tension he usually wore like armor had melted off him tonight—at least some of it. His eyes found you as soon as you stepped outside.

He didn’t smile, not exactly. But his mouth softened, and his gaze, so often sharp and unreadable, held something quieter.

“Took you long enough,” he said, his voice low and smooth, laced with something bordering on warmth.

You slipped into the water with a sigh, the heat instantly soothing your tired limbs. The week had been long—too long—but this moment felt like an exhale you’d both been waiting for.

“I wasn’t going to miss this,” you murmured, settling beside him. “Not after the week we’ve had.”

Aaron watched you for a moment, then nodded once, his fingers drifting through the water near yours but not touching—yet.

“It’s strange,” he said, almost thoughtfully, “how still everything feels right now.”

You tilted your head toward him. “Good strange or bad strange?”

His lips twitched. “Good. For once.”

Silence settled between you, but it wasn’t heavy. It was the kind that felt earned. Comfortable. The bubbling water filled the space where words weren’t needed, and the city lights blinked far below, distant and irrelevant.