Morning came too quietly too normally, as if the night before hadn’t torn everything apart.
Alessia had been awake long before sunrise, lying still with her eyes fixed on the ceiling. Sleep had only come in fragments, restless and shallow, filled with flashes she couldn’t fully piece together sounds, emotions, moments that refused to settle. A scream. A fall. Rafael’s voice. The truth. Each memory surfaced without warning, dragging tension back into her chest until it felt too tight to breathe through.
She turned onto her side, pressing her face into the pillow as though she could smother the thoughts, mute the noise in her head. It didn’t work. It never did. The silence only made everything louder.
Eventually, she stopped trying. With slow, deliberate movements, she pushed herself upri
