POV: Yessica | Location: Edinburgh
Agnes was already holding the paper when Yessica walked in Monday morning.
She set it on the counter without a word.
Opinion section. Third page.
On Starting Over: What It Takes to Leave Everything Behind
By Yessica Lockwood
Yessica stared at her name in print for a long time.
Her real name. Not Sterling. Not Mrs. anything.
Lockwood.
"When did you submit this?" Agnes asked.
"Three weeks ago. On a whim." Yessica touched the edge of the page. "I didn't actually expect them to—"
"Well, they did." Agnes folded her hands on the counter. "Go ahead. Read it."
"I wrote it. I know what it says."
"Read it anyway. It's different when it's real."
Yessica read it.
It was different when it was real.
The words were hers — but seeing them laid out on a pr
