LAUREN'S POV

The sound of the luggage box zipping cut sharply through the quiet room, that metallic rasp breaking into my thoughts like a reminder of finality. It was the sound of closing doors, of a chapter ending, of me stepping into something entirely new. I had been staring at the ceiling moments earlier, my mind restless, when Tessa finally finished convincing herself that calling a doctor wasn’t necessary.

I’d had to beg her not to. She was stubborn, her concern etched into every ...