The Coin

Alessandro’s POV

The party ended, but the noise in my head did not.

The sound of champagne clinking in glasses, whispers, and gasps as Sandra's ex attempted to punch Micah shall remain dancing in my ears. But more than any of those sounds, the buzzing of my phone. That picture. That message. My secret was in someone else's pocket, just waiting to go off like a loaded gun.

At last, I was back in the house; I was alone in my room, and taking off my jacket with fingers that shook. All I wanted was to sink into the silence. I wanted to forget.

But silence didn't last long in my life.

I threw my shirt onto the bed, and that was when I spotted it, my hoodie. The very hoodie I wore on that first night. The night everything changed. I grabbed it and almost hugged it like an idiot, and that's when something slipped out of the pocket.

A coin.

It rang as it hit the floor, sharp and unexpected, piercing the quiet.

Not just any coin, an old one. Worn with time. Heavy. The kind of weight that felt