Grant

The entire room was tense, like the walls themselves were holding their breath. Jaicy had finally stopped shaking. She sat stiffly beside me, arms crossed, eyes darting. Aria kept a hand on her knee, grounding her, because someone had to.

Then my father’s phone rang.

He reached for his laptop at the same time, a single movement that told me exactly what this was.

The results.

I exhaled, already tired. Already over it. “Can I leave now?” I mumbled, standing up.

That’s when it ...