Before I Disappear

Ruby's Pov

The world was unusually quiet that evening — that strange, breathless kind of quiet that presses down on your chest. The sun was lowering behind the school field, painting everything gold, and for once, I wished time would stop there, in that color, in that peace.

Milo sat beside me on the bleachers, leaning back with one knee raised, eyes on the fading horizon. He had that faraway loo