The next morning at the retreat, the air felt fresher and the sun brighter, but my mood was anything but sunny. I woke up with a knot in my stomach that refused to loosen. The image of Lila climbing onto Damien’s lap the night before at the bonfire played on repeat in my head her legs spread wide, her body pressed against him, laughing like she belonged there. The way he hadn’t immediately pushed her away. The casual comfort she showed around him. It annoyed me more than it had any right to. Irrationally so. I told myself over and over again that I didn’t care. He was just a professor. A cold, distant man who had made it clear he wanted nothing to do with me. I was done, I was completely done.
I repeated the mantra while getting ready, choosing a simple outfit jeans and a modest top deter
