The hospital was quieter than usual for a Thursday night shift. Most of the chaos had died down, and Stacy was finally headed to the staff lounge for a quick break. Her head was still foggy from the dream she hadn’t been able to shake.

  Kalil’s eyes. Kalil’s voice.

  Kalil’s lips, almost on hers.

  She bit her lip and shook her head. It was just a dream. Just a trick of her mind.

  She pressed the elevator button, hoping no one else was heading up. She needed five minutes alone to clear her head.

  Ding.

  The doors slid open.

  And there he was.

  Kalil.

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  He stood in the back corner, arms crossed, wearing dark scrubs, a stethoscope slung around his neck, and that unreadable expression she’d come to hate... and crave.

  She hesitated.

  “You getting in or not?” he asked, voice low.

  She stepped in without a word. The doors closed behind her with a soft hiss. Just the two of them. The hum of the elevator. And the silence that pressed against her skin like heat.

  The air was thick. Electrified.

  Stacy kept her eyes forward, pretending not to feel his gaze drift over her. But it did- slow, deliberate. Like he was fighting himself.

  “I haven’t seen you around,” he said after a beat.

  She swallowed. “You’ve been avoiding me.”

  “You’ve been avoiding me first.”

  Silence again.

  Then- a jolt.

  The elevator came to a sudden stop between floors. The lights flickered, then settled on dim emergency backup. Stacy stumbled slightly.

  Kalil moved before she could fall- steady hands on her arms, catching her like last time.

  Her breath caught.

  His hands lingered. Too long. Too warm.

  “You okay?” he asked, his voice rough.

  She nodded, but didn’t move. “I had a dream.”

  His brows furrowed.

  She looked up, her voice quieter. “About you.”

  He went still.

  “Let me guess,” he said, tone unreadable. “I was the villain.”

  “No,” she said. “You were the reason I didn’t want to wake up.”

  Kalil’s jaw tightened. His eyes burned silver, just for a second- so fast she thought she imagined it.

  He stepped back, away from her touch, his hands balled at his sides.

  The elevator lights returned, and the doors began to slide open.

  But as she stepped out, she felt his fingers graze hers. Just a whisper of contact.

  And he whispered so low only she could hear, “Stay away from me, Stacy. For your own good.”

  She turned to look at him.

  But he was already gone.