The alarm buzzed at 6:30 a.m., shrill and unwelcome, stabbing through the fog in my head. I slapped it off and lay still for a moment, staring at the ceiling. My body felt heavy, like I’d just run laps in a storm, but my eyes refused to close again. Maybe it was nerves. Maybe I made myself check my phone and saw that Ryan had finally texted back.
Yeah, we can talk. What’s up?
I’d typed out a dozen different responses before settling on the plainest thing I could manage. Where are you?
He’d answered a few minutes later. Going to class right now. Catch me in the cafeteria this afternoon.
So here I was, dragging myself out of bed even though my muscles ached, my chest felt light and weak, and a part of me wanted nothing more than to sink back under the covers. But I couldn’t. Not with th
