worditzzaee
Ziya leaned against the wall, arms crossed, one sneaker pressed flat behind her. She didn't say anything at first.
Ray stood a few feet away, hands in his pockets, hoodie half-zipped. He wasn't smiling; not the playful one he always wore. Not now.
"Say what you came to say," Ziya said finally, her voice level.
Ray tilted his head, eyes never leaving hers. "You ever get tired of pretending you don't want me?"
Her breath caught - not enough to show, but enough for her to feel it. Ziya pushed off the wall, pacing a few steps to help her stay calm.
"You ever get tired of assuming you know everything?" she shot back.
Ray didn't flinch. He followed her slow path with his eyes, steady and unbothered.
"I don't know everything," he said, voice lower now. "But I know you don't look at me like someone you don't want."
Ziya stopped walking. She faced him, chin lifted, lips tight like she was about to deny it, like she wanted to.
But she didn't.
Instead, she said, quietly, "Wanting you and trusting you are two different things."
Ray stepped closer, not all the way, just enough for his voice to drop into the space between them.
"Then let me earn the second," he said.
"But stop lying about the first."
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
When a chance encounter turns into a slow, steady pursuit, Ziya finds herself caught in a game she never agreed to play. And Ray? He's not giving up, not when he sees the fight behind her silence, the fire in her guard.
But love doesn't follow the rules.
And the lines they swore not to cross?
It's not just close.
They're out of bounds.