Julian unlocked the door and stepped into the apartment.
The lights were still on. Nothing had changed. The room held the same quiet order, the same arrangement of things exactly where they had been when he left.
Lucian was still there.
He sat near the window with a book open in his hand, posture relaxed, one leg crossed over the other. The lamp beside him cast a steady light across the page, catching the line of his wrist, the controlled stillness in the way he occupied the space.
He looked up the moment Julian entered.
"You were gone longer than usual," Lucian said.
Julian shut the door behind him with more force than necessary. The sound cut through the room, sharp enough to break the stillness that had settled there.
Lucian's gaze did not shift away.
Julian did not take off his jacket. He did not move toward the kitchen or the table or any of the places he usually went first.
He stayed where he was.
"How long?"
The question came out without hesitation.
