Chapter 50: Coming Clean
Ethan watched Isabela’s shocked reaction to the news being displayed. She hadn’t even noticed that he had walked in, as her eyes were still fixed on the TV.
He didn’t say anything at first.
Instead, he stood there by the door, silently studying her. He could almost see the war behind her eyes. Guilt, grief, and even a little bit of fear.
Finally, he spoke. "Bad day?"
She jerked, visibly startled, as she spun around to face him.
"E-Ethan," she stammered, her voice barely more than a whisper.
Instead of replying, he turned towards the TV, where the news anchor was still reporting on the fire and the death of the Vigilants, before turning back to her.
"Someone you know?" he asked, feigning ignorance, as if he didn’t already know the answer to that.
"N—" she almost denied instinctively, but she paused, looked directly into his eyes, then answered, "Yes."
Ethan was a bit surprised that she admitted it so easily. He had expected her to deflect or switch the topic—maybe even run into her room—but it seemed he was wrong.
And that was surprising.
"You want to talk about it?" he asked as he slowly approached.