Chapter 74: The Call
The call came on a Tuesday.
Maya was in her shop, working on a new painting, when her phone buzzed on the desk. She glanced at the screen and saw an unfamiliar number. Her heart skipped a beat. She'd been waiting for this call for weeks, hoping for it, dreading it. She'd spent so many nights staring at her phone, willing it to ring, imagining what she'd say when it finally did. She'd rehearsed the conversation a hundred times in her head. She'd imagined every possible outcome—the acceptance, the rejection, the silence. She'd prepared herself for the worst, but she'd never stopped hoping for the best. Her hands were shaking as she picked up the phone. She could feel the weight of the moment pressing down on her, the years of work, the hours of writing, the countless n
