Chapter 1
Amelia
When I woke up, the warmth I had felt beside me throughout the night was gone.
Nothing had actually happened. It had only lasted a few hours.
Yet somehow, those few hours felt like the most exciting thing that had happened to me in a very long time.
Two Years Earlier
Ethan
I was hanging out with my friends at university when one of the girls invited us to a house party. Dylan had a crush on one of the host’s friends, so he practically dragged us along because he didn’t want to go alone.
Now I was walking through the narrow canalside streets of Navigli, the city’s nightlife district, heading toward the apartment where the party was being held.
Amelia
The four of us were getting ready at Emma’s apartment.
Lately, we’d been ending up at a different party almost every weekend.
All we wanted was to have fun.
Back then, I had no idea that some of the choices I was about to make would change my life forever.
“Let’s not waste money on drinks once we get there,” Emma said. “We’ll drink here first.”
We bought a bottle of vodka and divided it between the four of us.
By the time we arrived at the party, I didn’t think I was drunk.
That changed after a few more drinks inside.
The room began to sway ever so slightly, but I was having the time of my life. I laughed with strangers, blurted out ridiculous jokes, and acted like everyone in the room had been my friend for years.
I had no idea how foolish I probably looked.
Then a loud crash echoed from upstairs.
Ethan
I don’t remember how much I’d had to drink.
One second everything was fine.
The next, someone punched Dylan square in the face.
The guy was almost twice his size, but Dylan still charged at him.
I tried to pull them apart.
I could barely stay on my feet.
The last thing I remember was a sharp blow to my head.
Then everything went black.
When I opened my eyes again, a tall girl with long, jet-black hair was kneeling over me. She squeezed a little from a small red tube onto her fingertip and gently spread it across my split lip.
I sat up in alarm.
Amelia
Curiosity got the better of me, so I went upstairs.
Everyone was telling the same story.
Apparently, a guy named Dylan had flirted with the host’s girlfriend.
His friend had been yelling at everyone while completely drunk.
Both of them had been thrown out.
I stepped onto the balcony overlooking the street.
From there I could see the entrance to the building.
I watched Dylan leave his unconscious friend on the sidewalk before disappearing into the night.
The other guy didn’t move.
I hurried downstairs.
Digging through my purse, I found a small tube of hand cream.
His lip had split open.
It wasn’t much, but at least it would keep the wound from drying out.
As I gently applied it…
His eyes opened.
Blue-green.
The kind of eyes that changed color depending on the light.
His brown hair shimmered like gold beneath the old street lamps lining the Navigli canals.
For a brief moment…
He reminded me of a frightened stray puppy.
Strangely enough…
He was kind of adorable.
Ethan
“What are you doing?” I asked.
The first thing I did was instinctively check whether my wallet was still in my pocket.
She burst into laughter.
As if I’d just told the funniest joke imaginable.
Apparently, she was just as drunk as I was.
“Don’t laugh,” I muttered.
She held up the tube.
“It’s not lipstick.”
“It’s cream.”
“For your lip.”
Only then did I realize she’d actually been trying to help me.
“What’s your name?”
“Amelia.”
“Did you come here alone?”
She shook her head.
“I lost my friends.”
“Should I call your parents?”
The smile vanished from her face.
“No!”
Her voice echoed through the empty street.
A second later, it became barely a whisper.
“They don’t know I’m here.”
I sighed.
There was no way I could leave her alone in this condition.
“Where do you live?”
“I’ll walk you home.”
Amelia
He wanted my address.
I frowned.
“Are you some kind of creep?”
He blinked in confusion.
“Why would I tell you where I live?”
“What if you try something?”
He took a slow breath.
“If you’d rather stay out here alone dressed like that, that’s your decision.”
Then he turned around and started walking away.
Only then did I notice the men staring at me from across the street.
A chill ran through me.
I hurried after him.
“You never told me your name.”
He stopped.
“You’re right.”
“I guess now I understand why you thought I was a creep.”
A faint smile crossed his face.
“I’m sorry.”
“I’m Ethan Carter.”
“Amelia Bennett.”
Ethan
As we walked toward the metro station, I found out she lived in the heart of Milan, only a few stops from Navigli.
Turns out we were practically neighbors.
She barely stopped talking the entire walk.
She asked me about everything.
She wasn’t shy in the slightest.
Normally, people who talk that much exhaust me.
But Amelia was different.
She laughed constantly.
Yet beneath every smile…
There was an unmistakable sadness.
Her face looked full of life.
Her eyes belonged to someone who had been carrying the weight of the world for years.
Maybe that was what caught my attention.
Amelia
I was the one doing almost all the talking.
Getting information out of him was nearly impossible.
He was one year older than me.
He studied Industrial Engineering.
Every answer he gave was short.
Simple.
He hardly asked me anything about myself.
He was probably only trying to make sure I got home safely.
When we reached my apartment building near the Duomo district, I was about to thank him and head inside.
Then, for the first time…
He truly looked at me.
“Amelia…”
“Yeah?”
“How long have you been lonely?”
I froze.
Time seemed to stop.
My throat tightened.
No words came out.
Ethan immediately looked away.
“I’m sorry.”
“I shouldn’t have asked.”
Silence settled between us.
“It’s just…”
“If someone really looks into your eyes…”
“They can tell.”
He turned around and started walking away.
I stood there without moving.
Had he been watching me the entire time?
Or had he actually seen me?
Before I could think, I called after him.
“Ethan!”
He turned.
“I’ve got beer at home.”
I hesitated.
“If you want…”
“We could have one.”
The corner of his mouth lifted.
It wasn’t a warm smile.
It was the tired smile of someone who had forgotten what happiness felt like.
“You do realize you’re inviting a man you’ve known for less than an hour into your apartment at three in the morning?”
“Aren’t you scared?”
“No.”
The answer came out before I even had to think.
Ethan
This girl was either completely insane…
Or unbearably lonely.
She was beautiful.
Confident.
The kind of woman most people noticed the second she walked into a room.
But no one should have been this trusting.
Maybe if I pushed a little further, she’d change her mind.
“Amelia…”
“Yeah?”
“If I come upstairs…”
“I’ll assume you’re expecting something.”
Now she’ll definitely change her mind, I thought.
She raised an eyebrow.
“Like what?”
“You know what people assume when a man and a woman are alone together in the middle of the night.”
She looked down.
Then slowly lifted her eyes back to mine.
“So?”
“Why shouldn’t they?”
For a moment, I couldn’t even answer.
That wasn’t the response I’d expected.
“All right,” I finally said.
“Let’s go.”
We took the elevator to the sixth floor.
She unlocked the apartment.
Inside was a modern studio overlooking the rooftops of Milan.
The living room opened onto a spacious terrace.
Beyond it, the glowing skyline stretched toward the illuminated spires of the Duomo di Milano, standing silently beneath the night sky.
