"Okay let's go," I said because she is correct. My emotions are swirling like unsettled waters right now, recognition sinking in like a stone into dark pools. So we walked back to our house, footsteps matching in tacit sync, and we went straight to our rooms, doors opening then closing like soft punctuation to an unspoken understanding.

As I enter my room, Selena and I talk about a lot of words flowing like a released tide as we pour out emotions, some raw like open wounds, some secrets I'd ...