Walking out of the room with Dorian, I saw Thominic trying to help Kelso, who was still struggling to focus.
They stayed behind.
Dorian kept walking ahead of me.
I kept walking.
Step by step.
Trying to ignore the hollow feeling sitting in my chest.
Trying to ignore the truth that kept pressing against me—
That I would never have what they had.
Never have a family that looked at me the way their parents looked at each other.
Never be held like that.
Never be loved like that.
The thought followed me with every step I took, growing heavier, tighter, harder to breathe through.
It wasn’t loud.
It wasn’t dramatic.
It was quiet.
Persistent.
Like something that had already settled into me and wasn’t planning on leaving.
And just as I stepped forward again, I bumped into someone.
