The first few lines appeared slowly across the white wall.
Pencil against painted plaster made a faint scratching sound. Soft. Repeated. Steady.
Aiden stood a step behind Lily, one shoulder resting lightly against the edge of the long desk where the art supplies were scattered. The room smelled faintly of fresh paint and sharpened wood from newly opened pencil boxes. Somewhere behind them a jar of brushes clinked softly as someone moved it.
But his attention stayed in one place.
On Lily.
Her hand moved across the wall carefully at first, the pencil tip hesitating before each stroke.
Then gradually—
The hesitation disappeared.
The lines began flowing.
Her fingers moved lightly, confidently, like she had forgotten that anyone else was in the room.
Aiden watched the way her wrist turned gently while drawing the outline of a figure. The movement was smooth, Natural.
Like breathing.
A small strand of her black hair slipped forward near her cheek as she leaned closer to the wall, concentrating.
She didn't notice it.
She didn't notice anything around her.
Her entire focus was on the drawing.
Aiden's eyes narrowed slightly as he observed her.
…Looks like she's doing what she loves.
The thought came quietly.
Almost amused.
A small breath of laughter left him under his breath.
Just a few minutes ago she had been standing here worrying about making mistakes.
Her voice had been small.
Afraid.
"What if I do something wrong?"
And yet now—
She looked completely different.
Her shoulders were relaxed.
Her pencil moved freely.
There was a soft brightness on her face he hadn't seen earlier.
"…But now she's doing her best."
Aiden shifted his gaze to the wall again, reaching for a pencil from the table beside him.
The wood felt smooth between his fingers.
He began sketching lightly on another part of the mural.
But even while drawing—
His attention drifted back to her again.
Unintentionally.
Like something pulling his focus.
The motion of her hand.
The quiet concentration in her expression.
The way the sunlight from the window fell across the side of her face, touching the soft curve of her cheek.
It reminded him of something.
A memory surfaced before he could stop it.
The movie day.
He remembered standing in the hallway outside the classroom.
Mira's voice echoing lightly.
"Lily is coming too."
He remembered his own reply without thinking.
"I'll pick her up. You come with Jake."
At that moment it had seemed like the simplest decision.
No hesitation.
No real reason.
Yet later—
Driving to the bus stop—
He had wondered why he volunteered so quickly.
His pencil paused for a moment against the wall.
His thoughts drifted further back.
The bus stop.
She had been standing there alone.
Wind moved through the street softly that afternoon, brushing against the small trees beside the road.
Her hair had been slightly messy because of it.
He remembered the way she had been holding it down awkwardly with one hand, looking slightly troubled by the wind.
Then his car had stopped beside her.
And when she looked up—
Her eyes had widened just a little.
Aiden's pencil stopped moving.
He leaned back slightly, staring at the unfinished sketch in front of him but not really seeing it.
That day she had been wearing a dress.
Baby blue.
The color had been soft and Calm.
Different from the usual clothes he had seen her in at university.
Without thinking he had stepped out of the car.
Walked toward her.
He remembered saying her name.
"Winslow."
And while standing close—
He had noticed something else.
Her hair had fallen across her face again because of the wind.
He had moved it aside almost automatically.
His fingers brushing lightly against the strand.
At that moment he had thought something simple.
She wears different outfits today…
The dress suits her.
His eyes lowered slightly.
He remembered the look on her face.
Her nervousness.
The way she had frozen for a second when he moved closer.
Aiden's eyebrows drew together faintly at the memory.
…Was I getting too close?
He had wondered that while driving.
He remembered glancing at her briefly from the driver's seat.
Her hands had been folded together in her lap.
Her shoulders stiff.
Eyes carefully avoiding looking at him.
Why does she always look uncomfortable when I get close?
The thought had crossed his mind then.
Yet at the same time—
She was completely different from the girls he was used to.
Girls who tried to sit near him.
Girls who laughed loudly at everything he said.
Girls who followed him around campus like shadows.
Lily never did any of that.
She stayed quiet.
She spoke only when necessary.
She seemed content simply existing in her own small space.
Aiden's pencil resumed moving across the wall slowly.
…She's different.
The words formed silently in his mind.
He remembered teasing her that day in the car.
Asking her to show proper respect to a senior.
Her reaction had been immediate.
Her cheeks had turned red.
Her lips had pressed together as if she was trying not to argue.
Aiden's mouth curved faintly at the memory.
"Her expression was… interesting to watch."
But another memory followed immediately.
His hand paused again.
The moment when she had called Jake by his name.
But with him—
She had said senior.
His eyebrows had drawn together then too.
He hadn't liked that.
Not particularly.
Then another memory appeared suddenly.
Something she had said casually that day.
About living with someone.
A baby.
Aiden's pencil stopped moving completely.
His gaze lifted slowly toward the wall but his thoughts were elsewhere.
"…That baby."
He stared at the lines in front of him without really seeing them.
Who was that…?
And the man who had been with her that day—
He remembered briefly seeing someone near her apartment building when he had dropped her off.
His jaw tightened slightly.
"…Who was he?"
The question lingered longer than he expected.
Aiden exhaled quietly and lowered his gaze again.
"It's her private life."
The thought was firm.
Clear.
"None of my business."
His pencil resumed drawing.
But the slight tension in his grip remained.
"…Still."
For some reason the thought refused to disappear completely.
He shifted his focus again.
Another memory surfaced.
This morning.
His phone screen.
He had opened her contact.
His thumb hovering over the call button.
The name on the screen had looked simple.
Lily Winslow.
He had stared at it for a few seconds.
Then—
He hadn't pressed it.
And later—
She had appeared anyway.
Her eyes had looked tired.
Slightly swollen.
As if she had cried.
Aiden's gaze moved unconsciously toward Lily again now.
She was still drawing.
Her pencil moved carefully along the outline of two small figures near the center of the mural.
Her expression was calm and Focused.
He remembered the reason for her red eyes.
The movie.
She had cried because of the ending.
At the time he had noticed it immediately.
But he hadn't said anything.
Even now he didn't understand exactly why it had bothered him.
"…Strange."
His eyes softened slightly.
Then he looked away again.
"I don't like getting too close to people."
That rule had always been simple.
Distance was easier.
No expectations.
No complications.
That was why he kept space between himself and others.
Even with names.
Calling someone by their first name felt unnecessarily personal.
Too familiar.
Yet—
It seemed to bother her when he called her Winslow.
Aiden frowned slightly.
"I don't know what to do with her."
The thought appeared quietly.
For a moment he said nothing.
Then he came to a simple conclusion.
"For now… staying friendly is enough."
"Keeping a line between us."
"Yes."
"That's better."
His expression didn't change as the thought settled.
He continued drawing again.
The sound of pencils scratching softly filled the quiet space between them.
Then—
Something touched his sleeve.
Light and Careful.
Aiden blinked slightly.
He hadn't noticed Lily approaching.
She was standing behind him now.
Closer than usual.
Her fingers rested gently against the fabric of his arm as if she wasn't completely sure she should touch him.
The contact was soft.
Hesitant.
He lowered his head slightly toward her without thinking.
A small habit that had begun forming without his awareness.
"What is it?"
His voice was quiet.
Lily looked up at him immediately.
Her eyes held a bit of nervousness again.
"Mm…"
She hesitated.
"Can you come and see… if this looks okay?"
Her hand lifted slightly as she pointed toward the section she had been working on.
"My sketch…"
Aiden followed the direction of her finger.
Then he glanced back at her briefly before walking the few steps toward the wall.
He stopped in front of the drawing.
For a moment—
He didn't speak.
The sketch was still incomplete.
Just outlines and light shading.
But even unfinished,The figures looked alive.
Her lines were confident but delicate.
Every movement of the characters felt natural.
He leaned slightly closer to examine it.
"…Impressive."
The word formed silently.
He turned his head toward Lily.
"So Mira didn't lie about your talent."
His voice was low.
Only meant for her to hear.
"This looks perfectly fine."
His eyes returned briefly to the drawing again.
Then to her.
"You're amazing."
"I knew you could do this."
Her worried expression changed immediately.
The tension left her shoulders.
Her eyes softened.
Then she smiled.
Brightly.
The same smile he had noticed earlier.
The small dimple appeared again.
"Really…?"
She released a tiny breath.
"That's a relief."
Aiden laughed quietly.
The sound was soft.
Without thinking he lifted his hand and gently patted the top of her head.
A simple gesture.
Natural.
Then he turned back toward his own part of the wall.
He didn't say anything else.
Because suddenly—
He wasn't sure what else to say.
End of chapter 31