EVELYN
The hallway buzzed with energy, the usual noise bouncing off the lockers, but for me, it all felt distant and muted. My gaze landed on Trina, and my stomach dropped. She stood near the water fountain, laughing with a group of girls. They surrounded her like bees circling their queen. Among them was Charlotte. The same Charlotte we used to roll our eyes at, the one we gossiped about endlessly for being so fake. And now, she was part of Trina’s new circle.
My heart clenched painfully as if a fist had wrapped around it, squeezing tighter with every passing second. Trina threw her head back in laughter, and I couldn’t help but notice how radiant she looked. She didn’t seem to miss me, not even a little.
It was a gut punch.
I felt like a ghost, standing there watching someone who used to be my whole world act like I never even existed. We used to own this hallway together—our marked territory, our secret world. Now, it felt foreign, hostile even, as if I’d been replaced.
I forced my
