The seismic clash in the kitchen left the air in the apartment permanently altered. In its aftermath, Rooh retreated into a profound silence, one deeper and more deliberate than any that had come before. It wasn't the wounded silence of the past, nor the resentful quiet of recent weeks. This was a silence of processing, of self-preservation, and of a newfound, shaky courage she was still learning to understand.

For the next few days, she became a ghost in her own home. She timed her movements to avoid him completely. She would wake early, make her breakfast, and vanish into her room to work on her designs until she heard him leave for the hospital.