Zoey
The first thing I noticed when I got off the bus was how loud the city still was.
Same honking, same chaos, same cold bite of air. New York City hadn’t changed.
I tugged my bag closer to my chest, eyes tracing the gray skyline. It felt strange being back, like walking into a life I’d tried to pause but couldn’t. Every step toward my apartment was a step into the noise I’d tried to run from, the flashing headlines, the whispers, the scandal.
I had spent a week hiding in my cousin’s place upstate, hoping the world would move on. It didn’t. Every time I scrolled online, there it was, my name, his name and that picture of us at that stupid café. My face frozen mid-laugh, his hand on mine like we were in love.
Except maybe, somewhere deep down, that was the problem. Maybe a small, stu
