A Love Written in Secret

the light like scattered pieces of glass. Elara stood just outside the heavy oak doors, her hands clutched tightly around the strap of her satchel. Today, she told herself, she would be brav

, sensing something - a prickle at the back of his neck, a pull in his chest. He turned his head slightly, his gaze sweeping the shelves. And for the first time, their eyes almost met. Almost. Elara ducked her head, her heart hammering, pretending to study the book in her hands. She felt his gaze brush over her like a summer breeze, curious, lingering, then reluctantly moving on. Slowly, he slipped the Dickinson book from the shelf, revealing the silver ribbon she had hidden inside. He stared at it for a long moment. Then, without a word, he tucked it carefully into his coat pocket and turned away, disappearing down another aisle. Elara pressed her hand against the cool wood of the shelf, steadying herself. He had seen it. He had taken it. A giddy, dizzy joy bloomed inside her chest, so fierce and bright she had to close her eyes against it. Damien wandered the library in a daze, the silver ribbon burning against his heart where he had hidden it. He knew she had been there. He had felt her - close enough to touch, close enough to taste the shape of her breath in the air. And yet she had hidden. Or maybe he had been too afraid to truly look. He found himself back in the mythology section, standing in the familiar alcove where it had all begun. The place where letters had turned into something far more dangerous and precious than he had ever intended. Slowly, he pulled the ribbon from his pocket, running the silky length between his fingers. What message had she woven into this simple thing? He closed his eyes and imagined her: Hands small and clever, lips pursed in concentration, laughter waiting just behind her careful words. Eyes full of the stories she had never dared to tell aloud. He wanted to find her. He needed to. But more than that - He wanted her to find him, too. To choose him, not just in secret, but in the sharp, vulnerable light of reality. With a surge of reckless courage, he made a decision. That afternoon, while the library was busiest, Damien returned to the mythology alcove. But instead of leaving another hidden note, he left someth