Chapter 6

“Hahaha…” 

A broken chuckle rumbled up from my chest as I stared at the tiny object beside me. The sound didn’t match what I felt—too sharp, too hollow—but it escaped anyway, as if my body no longer knew how else to respond.

“I can’t believe this…” I whispered, dragging my palm slowly down my face.

I laughed again, softer this time, even as tears spilled from my brimming eyes, carving hot, unrelenting paths down my cheeks. Life had a cruel way of never asking if you were ready before pressing its full weight onto your shoulders.

And now, somehow, it expected me to carry all of it.

“Cassidy…” I murmured to myself, my fingers threading through my hair as I struggled to breathe through the tightness in my chest—caught between disbelief, fear, and the fragile beginning of something I wasn’t sure I was strong enough to face.

“I need to eat.”