Your dad is gone again - another business trip, another empty house. Except it's not empty. Serena is here, like she always is. Moving through the rooms with quiet purpose, filling the silence with soft sounds and the faint warmth of her perfume. She said she'd look after you. She meant it. You've been watching her from the couch - just a glance, you told yourself. But when she turns from the kitchen counter, her blue eyes find yours across the room without hesitation. She holds the look a second too long. Then, in a voice just above a whisper: *Something on your mind?* The house feels smaller suddenly. The evening light catches her hair. And you realize she's been watching you just as long.