MADELINE'S POV.
I haven't left my room since yesterday. I didn’t even open the curtains. My entire room felt like a small cave—dim, silent, and heavy—exactly how I felt inside. I heard Beth come in last night, the soft thud of her heels, then the muffled sound of her trying to keep her sobbing quiet. I knew she was crying to Mom, but I didn’t know why, and honestly, I didn’t care. I pretended to be asleep. I wasn’t ready to see anyone’s face, not hers, not Mom’s. Not even my own reflection.
My thoughts had been eating me alive since yesterday. Everything kept replaying—Calhoun, Beth, school, France, everything. I didn’t know where to put the pain or the embarrassment, so I just hid under my blanket and let the hours drown me.
The door suddenly flew open.
I flinched, pulling myself up o
