POV: Dre — Present Tense

The apartment feels too quiet.

I sit on the couch, wrists resting on my knees, trying to steady the chaos inside me. The memory stim device has stopped humming, but its effect lingers, like a faint echo vibrating in my skull. I can feel the threads of something buried, stretching, trying to connect.

Karen sits opposite me, steady and calm, but her eyes are alive, watching me, waiting. Waiting for me to find myself again.

I try to take a deep breath, but the air ...