[Hazel]
I had no idea what to say.
Telling the truth would mean one thing — going back to Mystic Falls. Back to the quiet life I’d fought so hard to escape. Back to the well-meaning neighbors with sharp eyes and sharper opinions, to the suffocating family dinners, the "so when are you getting married?" questions, the smiles that always came with expectations.
Back to the life I never wanted.
But lying?
Even if it was my only way out, I couldn’t find the words. I didn’t even know what to lie about. My mind was blank, panic
whispering too many things at once and none of them helpful. Every sentence I tried to form crumbled before it reached my lips.
I started fidgeting with my finger again — the same spot I’d been scratching raw since the conversation began. The skin there was alrea
