The stars were swallowed by the city lights.

Even sitting by the windows on the thirteenth floor, the sky was too far, and the stars took shelter from the artificial glare of the skyscrapers and headlights. Boston was glowing in all sorts of different colors from the red of the breaking cars to the white of the office space where a man sat idly behind his desk. He must have been working late. Solace wondered if he could see them. Just two figures sitting in the dark. That's creepy.

But the night was one of her favourite places. It was her muse when she painted. It was her safe quiet place to make her life decisions. Her mind was always whirling, and the night provided her with an outlet to just think. That was why her bedroom was sacred. It was where she locked herself to find comfort after a long day. Especially when she was living back home with her loud nosy parents. She loved them to death, but she loved her company just as much.

It was one of the reasons why she never had a boyfriend. She wanted to find someone whose company she enjoyed as much as hers. Someone who felt as safe and loving as her solitude. She hadn't yet.

Solace had promised herself that she would move out one day and live on her own. Her entire place would give her peace where she could sit by the window as it rained to do her homework and cook in the kitchen to the sound of her music. She had discovered a bit of that amity living with Emi.

This night would have been perfect if it wasn't for the fool laying a few feet beside her.

"Do you think if I jumped from the roof, I would make it to that building?" Sage wondered seriously. He laid on his stomach, using his coat as a make-shift pillow as he flicked his chin to gesture to the building.

Solace was in the same position, too worried to sleep on her back with the fear for her expensive braids. I really wish I had my bonnet with me. "You would fall to your death," she replied.

"I think I could make it. I just need the right momentum. I've done something similar in Detroit once when I was being chased by these goons after I hacked into their databases to expose this large accounting firm for money laundering."

Solace sighed, resting her cheek on her arms to face him. "For the last time, stop telling me about all the illegal things you've done. I don't want to be an accessory in your crimes."

"But who else am I going to tell? They're really interesting," Sage said in defense as he copied her movement and propped his head on his forearms. "My future autobiography is going to be a best seller with all these stories."

She couldn't deny that she was curious about what he had been up to. From what she had heard, it sounded like an action film. He travelled to Europe with no doubt in a secret identity. He brought down powerful people. Sage was like those cool spies who dressed up in tuxes and drove luxury cars. Actually, scratch that. He was like the lame cheaper version. From what she had witnessed, he wasn't particularly good at his job.

"You know what. I think you should try jumping from the building. Watching you fall to your death would be the highlight of my night," Solace remarked, her eyes beginning to flutter from exhaustion. This time had absorbed every bit of energy and anxiety out of her.

"You have very little faith in me."

She didn't warrant his comment a reply and instead, tried to sleep. It was the early hours in the morning, and when she had texted Emi that neither Sage nor she would be coming back home for the night, it was almost midnight. It had to be at least two a.m., now. Emi messaged her back uneasy and demanding why they wouldn't be back. Solace promised that they were okay, and she would tell her tomorrow. They weren't exactly okay, and she wasn't sure how much she would tell her roommate, but she would figure that out later.

The stillness of the office was inviting, and she could feel her body succumb to the fatigue. She felt herself being pulled into the welcoming whispers of a peaceful sleep. Her body relaxed, and her breathing slowed.

"Solace?" Sage asked, and the soothing lull broke.

She cracked open an eye. "Yes, Sage?"

"Do you have any snacks in your backpack?"

"No, Sage."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, Sage."

He exhaled dramatically. "You're always prepared. How could you forget the snacks?"

"Because I didn't think we would be having a slumber party in the senator's building," she said dryly.

"Okay, you've got a point," he muttered.

Solace waited a few more seconds for him to speak, and when she didn't, she smiled at herself contently and closed her eyes once again. Almost immediately, she was drawn to the night like a moth to a flame. Everything was quiet, and the carpeted floors were beginning to feel like cashmere, and her coat was suddenly the best pillow. She was a bit cold, and a part of her wished Sage would move closer so she could take advantage of his body heat. But she would rather punch herself in the gut than ask him to do such a thing.

"Solace?"

She kept her eyes closed and swallowed a frustrated scream. "Yes, Sage?"

His voice was hoarse when he spoke. "When I left... were you worried?"

"That would imply I care," she replied briskly.

"But did you miss me?"

Her eyes flew open. What sort of question was that? She didn't know how to answer it. There was no way she would admit to missing him. Did she even miss him? Sage had gone from being a part of her life to no longer existing overnight. No one ever challenged Solace as he did. He was the first person she looked for when she entered class. The bits of his unruly hair and his stupid smile. She looked for him.

But no, she didn't miss him. She didn't.

Solace tried to articulate her words carefully under his gaze. "Your absence was deafening," she whispered.

She could tell he wasn't satisfied with her answer. From the light peering into the room, she saw the frown pulling at his lips and the fierce flicker of his honeyed eyes. He looked as if he needed to know that someone except for his family missed and remembered him. Almost as if he needed to know if she missed and remembered him.

"Everyone missed you," she added, trying to make him feel better. Since when have I ever cared about his feelings. "They even had an assembly and a memorial, which was basically a shrine."

That sparked his interest. "Why is it that people miss you more once you're dead?" he asked softly.

That question hit her hard like waves crashing onto the shore. You never realized what you had until it was gone. It was like that when her grann died. She loved her, but she always took her for granted. She was the one Solace called when she was angry at her parents. Grann babysat and picked them up from elementary school and made tablet cocoye. She was always there until she wasn't. By the time Solace realized how much that woman molded her life, it was too late.

"Maybe regret outweighs their grief?" she offered unsurely.

"Maybe."

She cleared her throat, the vulnerability in his voice doing undistinguishable things to the organ in her chest. "They held the assembly in the gym, and they had your teachers and friends speak about you. Jabari was one of them. He made a slideshow of you and everything."

Solace recalled that day distinctly. She was sitting in the back row of the bleachers as his best friend teared up on stage and told stories about their best times, pleading to everyone to join the search parties and repost on social media. His teachers were talking about how amazing Sage was and his wonderful accomplishments. She usually would've felt a kick of jealously, but there was nothing that day.

"Did anyone cry?"

She snorted, now wide awake. "Yeah, I saw a few girls crying. Kajol was one of them." A small smirk pulled at his lips at the mention of the girl he went out with a few times. She remembered thinking why a beautiful girl like her would go out with a thing like him. "The guys on the soccer and basketball team weren't any better. Oh, and the teachers. Counsellor Chen was one of them. She asked me if I wanted to talk to her about how your disappearance affected me."

She had respectfully declined her offer. Solace and Sage had become severely acquainted with Chen when they were told to go to her office after a verbal fight would break out during class during the four years in high school. Or when either of them wanted to form another club to spite the other. Or when one of them got each other kicked out of a club and took over.

Safe to say, they visited her office a lot.

It usually started with Counsellor Chen asking why the fight started. They had the same three answers: Sage made a stupid comment, Solace aced her exam while he didn't, or one of them did something manipulative and slightly immoral to hurt the other. Another fight would then ensue in her office, Chen would pop a few pills, attempt to reason with them, and then proceed to kick them out, making them promise it would never happen again.

It always happened again.

"She was a useless counselor," Sage remarked amusedly. "We always left her office way angrier at each other than when we first came in."

He wasn't wrong. "There was this one time she actually tried. When she made us work together to create a presentation about teamwork and conflict resolution."

Sage chuckled as he turned to his side. His hair fell onto his forehead until he pushed it back. "That went horribly. We couldn't even agree on the theme for the powerpoint. Chen was pissed when we ended up doing the presentation on our own."

"She turned so red," Solace laughed, the memory now playing in her mind. "I think we traumatized the poor woman. She was in such a happy mood when our graduation was getting closer."

"How was graduation?" His voice was melancholic at the thought of missing one of the most important milestones of high school.

Solace yawned, adjusting her head on her arms. "Nothing special. Just sat there for two hours until everyone's names were called and then threw the hats into the air like we were in High School Musical," she said casually. Okay, she was downplaying it just a bit. The actual ceremony was boring but seeing the kids she grew up with in their blue gowns and taking photos with her friends was a highlight.

"And you were valedictorian, I bet."

"Of course I was."

"If I was there, it would have been me," Sage retorted arrogantly. Even several months later, he still didn't let her live it down.

She rolled her eyes, the energy in her body depleted from the day. She couldn't find it in herself to argue with him. "Prom was two weeks later. Do you want to hear about it?" She saw him nod, so she continued. "It was really fun. Everyone was dressed up, and the venue was gorgeous. It was pretty drama-free except for a few getting caught hooking up in the bathroom."

Sage snickered. "I'm not surprised."

"Jane also dumped Caleb in front of everyone. He tried to act all tough and called her a bitch. The loser started crying when she slapped him," Solace said, a smile curling at her mouth.

"Dude, no way. They were dating for like three years," he exclaimed, thrilled by the high school gossip.

"What's even worse is that they were voted most likely couple to get married."

Sage's body shook with laughter. The glee rolling off him was palpable. "The irony," he sighed in delight.

A blanket of silence fell between them. This was it. Talking had finally drained Sage, and he would let her sleep. She closed her eyes once again, shivering as a draft passed by. She considered putting her winter coat on and letting her head rest on the hard floor. And then she heard a ruffling from beside her, and if she didn't know any better, she would think Sage had moved closer. It definitely felt that way from the heat coming off him.

"Solace?"

Her eyes fluttered open, and she was right. He was closer. He was still an arm's length away, and she was glad he didn't come any further, or otherwise, her Sage reflex would have been triggered, and she would have punched him in the face. "What is it now?"

"Did you miss me?" he repeated, his voice raspy and thick with the arrival of sleep.

Her breath hitched at how delicate he sounded. She could have kept denying it. She could have lied to herself and say no. But her heart knew Sage had left a chasm in her life that she tried to fill with no avail. No matter how many times she blocked him out, he always lingered in her mind. She subconsciously drew the boy, and if that wasn't enough to tell her she did indeed miss him, then she didn't know what would.

"Yes," she breathed out. "I did miss you, Sage Marco Reyes."

"I knew it. You do like me, after all," he said quietly. He sounded thoroughly pleased.

Solace scoffed, turning her head to the other side, so it was no longer facing his smug face. "Missing someone and liking them isn't mutually exclusive."

But that didn't wipe the smile on his face.

Her heart was beating quickly at the confession. It wasn't like she had declared her love for him. Ew, even the thought made her want to throw up. She simply said she missed him. People missed things all the time. It didn't mean anything. Solace was thankful he didn't say anything further. But then moments later, the quiet was broken, and this time, it wasn't him.

"Esther," she said.

"Huh?"

"My middle name. It's Esther."

She didn't know why she told him. She knew his middle name, so it was only fair he knew hers.

And the last thing she heard before sleep overtook her was Sage whispering, "Solace Esther Laurent."

***

Author's Note:

Hi everyone!

This chapter was such a cute one to write! I hope it got you in your feels hahaha.

Also, this is the last week where I will be double updating. Starting next week, I will be updating on Mondays only!

Until next time – m.k.t