She couldn't move.
The lantern light flickered across the garden path, throwing long shadows across the hedges. The gentle splash of water from the fountain no longer sounded romantic—it sounded like static in her ears.
Nicky.
And Luis.
Luis gripping the front of his shirt.
Their mouths locked like it had never ended.
She stared, frozen behind the hedgerow. Her fingers still damp from the fountain. Her chest rising and falling too fast, too sharp.
She didn't know how long she stood there. Seconds. A minute. Maybe longer.
Her knees felt weak, but she couldn't make them move.
The worst part?
Nicky looked... happy.
He wasn't fighting it.
He wasn't hesitating.
He was kissing Luis like it was the only thing in the world he wanted to do.
Like she didn't exist at all.
