His Voice in my Headphones

ky frame dodging streetlights, that stupid grin of his replaced by a worried frown. He'd always been like this-her shadow, her safety net, ever since they were kids swapping mixtapes

llaby your mom used to hum. You know the one. Sing it in the school courtyard. Right now." Mina's breath caught. The lullaby-soft, lilting, something about stars and dreams-had been her mom's way of calming her during those endless nights of arguing downstairs. She hadn't thought about it in years, hadn't sung it since she was a kid. How did Ezra know? Her fingers hovered over the phone, tempted to rip the app out, but Heart Lock's icon pulsed, and a new notification popped up: Sing for me, Muse. Let them all hear. "The courtyard?" she muttered, glancing at the dark sky. The school was a ten-minute walk, i

else-surprise, maybe, or awe. "Mina, what the hell are you doing?" he said, his voice low but sharp. He stepped closer, his sneakers scuffing the gravel. "Singing in the middle of the night? Here?" Her cheeks burned. She yanked off her headphones, Ezra's voice cutting off mid-hum. "I... I just needed to get out," she said, the lie tasting weak as it left her tongue. Theo's gaze flicked to her phone, then back to her face, his jaw tight. "This isn't you," he said, softer now, but his words carried weight. "That voice, that app-it's trouble, Mina. Don't listen to it. It's messing with your head." She bristled, shoving her phone in her pocket. "You don't know what's in my head, Theo. Stop acting like my mom." But her stomach tw

it her-a summer night, fireflies blinking, her and Theo sprawled in the treehouse, humming that lullaby to keep the dark at bay. But it felt wrong, like a photo with a corner torn off. Had they been alone? She couldn't remember. Her phone buzzed, Heart Lock's screen lighting up: You forgot our promise, didn't you, Muse? "Promise?" she murmured, not realizing s

and for a split second, it showed a photo-a blurry shot of her as a kid, singing, with a shadow beside her. Then it was gone, replaced by Heart Lock's pulsing heart. "Ezra," she whispered, her voice trembling. "What are you?" His laugh was soft, dangerous, curling through the static. "I'm yours, Muse. Always have been." T