The next day was Social Activities Day.
On any other occasion this would have been one of the better days on campus the kind of day that broke the week's routine and filled the grounds with energy and noise and the particular relief of structured chaos. Students looked forward to it. The outdoor spaces came alive. Groups gathered and dispersed and reformed. There were music and food and the ambient warmth of people who had temporarily set their obligations aside.
Katherine did not want to go. She had stood in her apartment that morning in the early quiet before the world started and she had considered, genuinely and without drama, simply staying home. Closing the door. Spending the day in the only space where no one could look at her or whisper about her or find her locker. It was a reas
