Naming the Nightmare

KELLAN’S POV

I knew something was wrong with Piper.

It wasn’t anything she said. It was what she didn’t say. The way her laughter came a second too late. The way her smile curved perfectly, but never reached her eyes.

It was the way she watched me when she thought I wasn’t looking, like she was cataloguing me, memorizing details, bracing for something she didn’t want to name.

And I hated the feeli