#Chapter 27: Sunrise

YENA I woke to my phone chiming and turned it over to see a reply from Susan. Fine. Meet me in the library at 730. That was it. I blinked and rubbed my eyes. Nolan was already up, talking quietly on the phone and pacing in his walk-in closet. I was wrapping myself in a towel after taking a hot shower, when he knocked softly on the door. I told him to come in. The door swung open gently and Nolan stepped just over the threshold. He glanced at me and then looked down at the floor for a moment. When he looked up at me again, it seemed like he was making an extra effort to focus on my eyes. “Hey,” he said. “Would you like to come have some breakfast with me?” I said, “Oh,” and stalled, fumbling for a lie that would explain why I was suddenly busy at six in the morning. “It’s okay,” he said, taking a half step back out the door. “Just thought I’d ask, since you were up early.” “I’m just not hungry right now,” I said. It wasn’t a lie. My stoma