35. Roots

November 2026,

Scars Bay, USA

Katerina

I called him again as I rode up the elevator to his apartment.

In classic Jayden fashion, he did not answer.

Rolling my eyes, I walked down the hallway and entered the pin to his apartment. The edges of my lips tugged up when the door unlocked. Jayden might not have come to tonight's gala but the code to his apartment was still Alya's birthdate. It always has been. He could say whatever he wanted but I considered this proof that he didn't completely hate her. Maybe, there was still hope.

I opened the door and walked in. I didn't know what I had been expecting when I walked in but it certainly wasn't this.

The apartment smelled fresh, there were no empty bottles of alcohol, takeout containers, or the stale smell of heartbreak. In fact, I spotted a vase full of day-old lilies in a corner. If this was any evidence, Jayden was doing a