Chapter 105\u00a0<\/p>\n
Athena\u2019s POV\u00a0<\/p>\n
100)\u00a0<\/p>\n
Over the next few days, I threw myself into the mission of creating a home from nothing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was harder than I\u2019d expected. I\u2019d never realized how many little things went into making a place livable until I was standing in an empty apartment with a notepad, trying to remember if I needed a can opener or already had one. The truth was, I had nothing. Daxon had made sure of that when I left.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sarah and Leah both volunteered to help, and I couldn\u2019t bring myself to say no. Having their company made the overwhelming task feel more manageable, and their excitement about my independence was infectious.\u00a0<\/p>\n
We spent hours wandering through furniture stores and home goods shops, debating the merits of different coffee makers and whether I really needed matching dish towels.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou absolutely need matching towels, Leah insisted, holding up a set in sage green. \u201cIt\u2019s the little touches that make a place feel like\u00a0<\/p>\n
home.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sarah laughed, shifting her purse to her other shoulder. \u2018Leah, she\u2019s starting fresh, not staging a magazine shoot.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s nothing wrong with wanting things to look nice, Leah shot back, but she was grinning.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I found myself smiling too, something that had been happening more often lately. These women had become such unexpected blessings in my life, filling spaces I hadn\u2019t even realized were empty.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tristan and Orion helped when they could, though their idea of assistance usually involved carrying heavy things and arguing about\u00a0<\/p>\n
the best way to arrange furniture.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I couldn\u2019t get everything I wanted because of the short timeline, but I managed to gather the essentials. A bed, a small couch, a\u00a0<\/p>\n
kitchen table, basic cookware, and enough clothes and toiletries to get by.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Everything was delivered to Orion\u2019s house to wait until I got my keys, creating a small mountain of boxes in his garage that made Lily\u00a0<\/p>\n
ask if we they moving too.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The whole process made me realize just how much I\u2019d lost. Not just material things, but the simple freedom to choose what color my coffee mug would be or whether I wanted blackout curtains or sheer ones. I was starting completely over, and while that was terrifying, it\u00a0<\/p>\n
was also oddly liberating.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I even realized I needed a car. I\u2019d been relying on Tristan for transportation for so long that I\u2019d forgotten what it felt like to be able to go somewhere on my own schedule. But I pushed that worry to the back of my mind. One major life change at a time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Friday morning arrived with a mixture of clouds and nervous energy coursing through my veins. When the landlord handed me the keys, they felt heavier than they should have, weighted with possibility and responsibility.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
8:47 Wed, Jan 7\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 105\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is really happening,\u201d I whispered to myself as I stood in the doorway of my empty apartment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1100\u00a0<\/p>\n
Within an hour, the place was bustling with activity. Leah, Sarah, and I worked on unpacking and arranging while the men handled\u00a0<\/p>\n
the heavier furniture. I tried to help them as much as possible, but they kept insisting I direct rather than lift.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cJust tell us where you want things, Orion said, easily carrying a bookshelf that had taken three of us to get out of the delivery truck.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is your space. You\u2019re in charge.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
That phrase kept echoing in my head. I was in charge. Of my space, my choices, my life. It was a foreign concept that I was still\u00a0<\/p>\n
learning to embrace.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The boys had also insisted on covering the first few months of rent and utilities, despite my protests.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThink of it as a housewarming gift, Tristan had said when I tried to argue. \u201cYou\u2019ve already taken the big step of getting your own\u00a0<\/p>\n
place. Let us help with this part.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I wanted to be completely independent, but I also had to be practical. I didn\u2019t have enough saved to cover everything yet, and accepting their help didn\u2019t negate the progress I was making. I was still moving forward, just with a safety net.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tristan and I had been carefully cordial over the past few days, like we\u2019d made an unspoken agreement to pretend that night had never happened. We were polite, functional, and completely surface\u2013level in all our interactions.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I told myself I didn\u2019t care. I was too busy figuring out who I was as an individual to worry about complicated feelings or relationships\u00a0<\/p>\n
with the opposite sex.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But sometimes I caught him watching me when he thought I wasn\u2019t looking, and something in his expression made my chest tight in\u00a0<\/p>\n
a way I couldn\u2019t quite ignore.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI saw a total hunk when I was coming in earlier, Leah announced, breaking me out of my thoughts. She was arranging books on the shelf with more enthusiasm than the task really required. \u201cIs he your neighbor?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I raised an eyebrow, confused. \u2018What do you mean?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I was carrying in that box of kitchen stuff, I saw this incredibly handsome guy in the hallway. If I wasn\u2019t about to have my mating ceremony, I would have made him my second chance mate,\u201d she said, practically swooning.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI haven\u2019t seen anyone yet,\u201d I replied with a shrug. \u2018Maybe he lives nearby.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Honestly, I didn\u2019t have time for men, especially not handsome ones. In my experience, the more attractive they were, the more dangerous they tended to be. Daxon had been handsome too, in the beginning.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re really lucky,\u201d Leah continued, her voice taking on a dreamy quality. \u201cWhat I wouldn\u2019t give to have a man like that as my next-\u00a0<\/p>\n
door neighbor.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
8:47 Wed, Jan 7\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 105\u00a0<\/p>\n
The way she said it made me laugh despite myself. \u201cI thought your mating ceremony was in a few weeks?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is,\u201d Sarah chimed in with a smile. \u201cShouldn\u2019t you be focused on your own mate?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, but this guy is\u2026\u201d Leah gave us a look that was pure feminine appreciation, making Sarah and me exchange glances and shake\u00a0<\/p>\n
our heads.\u00a0<\/p>\n
100\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cLet her fantasize,\u201d Sarah said with a grin. \u201cI\u2019m sure my Athena doesn\u2019t have eyes or space for anyone else right now anyway.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I looked at her, surprised by the comment. What did she mean by that? Did she suspect something about my feelings for Tristan? No,\u00a0<\/p>\n
that was impossible.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There was nothing to suspect because I didn\u2019t have feelings for Tristan anymore. I\u2019d moved past that.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIs there someone you like?\u2018 Leah asked with a teasing voice.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Memories Drifted Into Soft Silence by Kyx Frost 105 Chapter 105\u00a0 Athena\u2019s POV\u00a0 100)\u00a0 Over the next few days, I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[77],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26262","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-second-gear-of-love-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26262","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26262"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26262\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26262"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26262"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26262"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}