Drained Warmth

“Elena, you’re getting rid of it, right?”

Elena didn’t blink. She didn’t flinch. She just looked straight into Lyra’s eyes and said the words that had been sitting heavy in her chest for days.

“I’m keeping it.”

The room fell into silence.

Talia let out a sound that was somewhere between a scoff and a laugh, full of disbelief. “What?” She blinked, as if Elena had just announced she was moving to Ju