CHAPTER 23
There was a chill in the air that didn’t match the weather. It clung to me long after I had left Steph at the student union, her final words echoing like a hollow bell in my chest: “I’m going to need some time.”
Time.
I didn’t know what that meant—days? Weeks? Forever?
I walked aimlessly through campus, my feet taking me nowhere in particular. I passed familiar buildings, students chatting and laughing on benches, the world moving on around me like I didn’t exist. A strange numbness settled over me, one I hadn’t felt in a long time. It was the kind of stillness that came after a storm, only this time, the storm wasn’t over. It was just beginning.
My phone buzzed.
Chen: Are you okay?
I stared at the screen. How had he known? I hadn’t told him I’d finally come clean to Step
