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My fingers scrolled quickly. I paused. I closed the app and opened it again. I couldn’t find the post. I couldn’t even find Aurora’s account.

She had already blocked me.

My inbox, meanwhile, had learned my name. Your journey is just beginning, Marlowe. A “tender window” guide, gauzy and beautiful, from a sender address that didn’t exist when I hit reply. An Instagram DM from an account with no posts: We’re holding space for you. Delete, delete, delete. And each one arrived anyway, soft as petals, regular as the tide.

I searched Reddit for the posts I’d found the day before. They were gone, and so were the accounts. So much for contacting anyone.

Then, right on cue, the group chat buzzed.

Callie: be there in twenty minutes

Priya: about to leave work

Jess: me too

Callie: Kai is being so sweet

Callie: I met him for coffee at the beach today

I studied a photo of a bracelet on her wrist.

Callie: isn’t it cute? he made it with quartz and puka shells he found on the beach in Mexico

Priya had sent a heart.

Jess: cool

Callie: he says the reason Bram wasn’t there is because they took him to the vet?? Marlowe, do you think Damian could be lying? I’m so confused

Priya: so what was that thing on our foreheads

Callie: he said it’s a vitality elixir made of beets, hibiscus, and schisandra

Callie: he says he thinks I should sign up for another retreat

Priya: Marlowe, are you there

Jess: Marlowe?

I pushed the phone away, said “fuck,” drew the curtains, then called Damian.

He answered on the second ring. “Marlowe.”

“Can you talk now?”

“Yes. Are you okay?”

His voice was low and warm. I wanted to say no. No, I’m not okay. But nothing objectively dangerous had happened.

“Yes. But things are already getting weird. I’m concerned about Callie and she’s saying stuff in the group chat that Kai absolutely should not see. I don’t know how to contain this.”

It all tumbled out of my mouth one and a half times too quickly.

“Marlowe.”

“What?”

“Take a deep breath. I’m here. You did the right thing calling me.”