“Alex?!” My voice comes out sharper than I intend, and I cross my arms, instinctively putting up a wall between us. “What the hell are you doing here?!”
I gasp as he pushes a vase over and it shatters on the ground. The rare Middlemist flowers Benedict gave me to replace the Kadpuls scatter everywhere. “He destroyed my life. Now I’m going to destroy his.”
“Stop it!” I yell. “What is wrong with you?!”
He looks up at me and I barely recognize him. His hair is a mess, like he’s been running his hands through it all day, and his eyes are bloodshot and ringed with dark circles. His suit is wrinkled, and his tie hangs loosely around his neck.
I brace myself, expecting him to yell at me some more. To accuse me of ruining his life again. To throw another tantrum. But instead, he just lets out a long, tired sigh, his shoulders slumping as if the weight of the world is pressing down on him.
“I don’t know.” His voice is quiet, almost broken. He meets my eyes, and for the first time, he looks utterly defeated. “I just…miss you.”
The words catch me off guard. This wasn’t the Alex I was prepared for, and I don’t know what to do with him like this.
He lets out a sigh, his gaze dropping to the floor for a second before he meets my eyes. “I needed to see you.”