Chapter 18. The Calm Before the Storm

Ally's POV

Measuring cups clink together as I gather ingredients, each movement deliberate, grounding. Flour dusts the air, and I can't help but smile, a real one, as I think of how Elliot's serious eyes would widen in fake horror at the mess I'm making.

"Elliot," I whisper, his name a secret shared between these four walls and me, "you'd scold me for sure."

The dough comes together beneath my hands, pliable and sweet, a creation born of necessity and a yearning for comfort. I shape it into balls, place them on a tray, and slide them into the oven. Dawn hums, content, as we watch through the glass, waiting for golden edges and melted chocolate.

"Maybe," I muse aloud, "we'll save some for Elliot. A peace offering for the chaos I've brought to his carefully structured world."

And there, in that quiet kitchen, with the aroma of baking cookies wrapping around me like a warm embrace,