Chapter 32
The halls buzzed with the usual noise—shuffling backpacks, squeaky sneakers on tile, the occasional locker slamming shut—but Lena still felt slightly out of sync, like the rest of the school had moved on without her while she’d been stuck hitting pause.
She wasn’t exactly returning from some dramatic absence, but her selective skipping had been enough to create distance. Her sick-day excuse had covered it on paper, though the reality was more about needing space—from certain people, certain truths. Today marked her attempt to step back into the rhythm of things, even if her pulse still quickened at the thought of running into anyone she wasn’t ready to face.
Ally was chipper beside her as they strolled across the parking lot toward the main entrance, the late morning sun warm
