It feels suffocating.
I stumble back against the couch and sink down, pressing my hand over my mouth to muffle the sound of my shaking breath.
Not again.
Not this.
I rebuilt myself once.
I can’t do it twice.
My phone buzzes again.
Finn.
Finn:
Hey you good?
You stopped texting.
Tell me you’re good.
I stare at the screen.
I could tell him.
I could tell any of them.
Kael would show up.
Finn would worry.
Atlas...he’d burn the world down.
But this is my first day.
My first chance.
I can’t let fear rip it away.
So I type:
Me:
I’m fine.Just tired.
Goodnight, Finn.
I set the phone facedown on the couch.
But sleep isn’t coming.
Because for the first time in a long time...
The past is knocking again.
And this time, it found my new address.