Chapter 34: Noise
Coming home was overwhelming. Not in a way that pushed her back, but in a way that gathered her all at once—voices overlapping, laughter spilling through open spaces, doors opening and closing as if the house itself had been waiting for her return. Her name moved through the air like something alive. Called from one corner, then another, carried by voices she knew before she even turned to look. Arms wrapped around her before she could settle her footing. Hands pulling her closer, pressing her into warmth that felt immediate and unquestioned. She was held. Welcomed. Claimed by a familiarity that did not hesitate. And for a moment—she let herself disappear into it. Into the noise. Into the certainty of belonging. Into the version of herself that had once lived here without fractur
- Writer
