sm

s the cold evening air brushed against my skin. My body felt tired in that deep, bone-heavy way t

reached into my bag for my keys. The mom

. In fact, it wa

ed. "What the h

as I pushed the door open an

to make it feel lived in, and nothing remotely valuable. If s

pt across the space carefully before landing on a

fr

t out a s

i

it wasn't

o seconds before something

ntire life, and yet she had betrayed me a

the silence afterward. She hadn't called. Hadn't texted. Hadn'

th

estion years of friendship. You start wondering whether the perso

sigh and headed

ng myself for an argument, but the word

together. "What

side it, pulling clothes from her side of the w

her grab another armful of

ion, Mia." My voice cam

look like I'm doing?" she snapped, sho

t, I just s

e movi

acking as if we were discussing the weather instead of

d struggled with the zipper

ling inside me alm

are somethin

n. She straightened,

ou disappear without a single call, text, apology-nothing. You go completely M.I.

oat ti

we were bes

ink that after what happened, then y

the floor with a thud. "I fucked your boyfriend, Jasmine,

d, I just s

harder than th

f Jason, but

er had. The girl I'd defended more times than I cou

t I though

tly. "That's all you have

es and took a few

dened. "You're just mad that I t

nd despite how in love with you he ac

tightened

nt, I coul

her. Still see the look on J

I refused to let her see it-because if

the tears and

t deserve

aid, my voice

owned.

the door. "Get

have reached her because sh

smi

shaking at my sides. "Get out, and don

ithout another word, she reached for the handle of

the door, then glanced

g a pathetic,

he wal

r slammed shut behind her, stari

felt stran

d it go

wouldn't le

o long that I couldn't remember a

ets, dreams, stupid inside jokes-and som

do to make her h

oat ti

gathering in my eyes and forc

rying over

nor Jason de

to do, I threw mys

he living room and kitchen, scrubbing and o

ally about t

omething to kee

ed, exhaustion had s

ollapsed onto my bed, hopi

it d

her, closed my eyes, opened them

d I was, my brain

olling through TikTok for a while would help.

hem were

her opening

ame and landed on a messa

be rescheduled to

No introduction. No name. Sti

ped me. Even his t

te

should have put my

ome and typed his nam

n Ja

s appeared

views. Awards.

another. The deeper I went,

work was even more impressive than I expecte

somehow, as though he had captured

were a l

than I

exhibitions, awards, and photogra

rtant people looked nothing like the professor who spent most o

person, and for reasons I cou

o another photo,

, he was sm

de him was a

hem looking entirely at ease in front of the camera. They looked good together.

he photograph longer

together. For some rea

I barely kne

t the photo. A few seconds

with you?" I mu

ke I cared w

ly kne

t him suggested I should stay a

fted back to th

ted the page and tossed my p