BETWEEN US AND THE PAST

PROLOGUE It’s my first day of college, and I don’t know if I should be more excited or more nervous. Maybe I’m both. My heart feels like it can’t decide whether to race ahead or hide somewhere safe. Everything around me feels new. New people. New faces. New opportunities. And honestly? It’s overwhelming in a way I never expected. So this is what it feels like, huh? Standing at the beginning of something that could change your life without knowing how. Do other people feel this way too, or am I the only one pretending to have everything figured out? I took a deep breath and looked out at the busy streets of Briarwood, the college town surrounding Westbridge University. Students walked past coffee shops and bookstores as if they already belonged here. I wished I could say the same. But I couldn’t. Because I’m Evelyn “Ey-vee” Loris, and I’m just getting started. I have no idea what my college life is going to look like—who I’ll meet, who I’ll become, or how much everything is about to change. All I know is this: I’ve officially arrived. x X X X X X X X X