"You don't know either?"
Alex's eyes glistened with unshed tears, yet he laughed—a bitter, hollow sound.
He raised his glass and downed the rest of the wine in one gulp.
"How did we end up like this? Why don't we have an answer? Why can I only watch as you drift further and further away?"
Lily listened in silence, her heart aching, her nose stinging with the threat of tears.
"I bought so many sparklers," Alex murmured. "So many times, I wanted to call you out to play. But every time, you seemed distracted—lost in thought. I knew… I knew you were thinking about Ethan."
He stood up and walked below deck.
Lily closed her eyes.
Tears slipped down her cheeks, silent and unrelenting.
For a long time now, Ethan had consumed her entire world.
A few moments later, Alex returned, carrying a bag filled with sparklers.
He knelt, carefully arranging them around the yacht's perimeter.
They were electronic sparklers.
