Maria:
I wake up before Lily, but I don’t get up immediately. For a while, I just lie there, staring at the ceiling, trying to figure out what exactly I’m supposed to do with everything I now know. My body feels slow, like it’s still catching up to the night before. Not tired in the normal way. Just… weighed down. The borrowed blanket is soft against my skin, but it doesn’t help the tightness in my chest.
The apartment is quiet at first, then gradually the city starts bleeding in through the window. Distant traffic, a voice somewhere below, the usual rhythm of people starting their day. It feels strange that everything outside is moving like nothing shifted.
I sit up slowly and rub my eyes. My phone is on the table beside the bed. I glance at it, then look away again.
Lily is already i
