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7. Raon
August 2026,
Scars Bay, USA
Jayden
I had stopped seeing Alya. After Kate showed me the picture in the company's newsletter, I wasn't able to conjure up Alya anymore. I was going through severe Alya withdrawals and I needed to find her quickly. I needed to talk to her and ask her a million questions but most of all, I wanted to hold her in my arms again.
I didn't know if this was a twisted joke the universe was playing on me though. What if the woman in the picture was a doppelganger? What if she wasn't my Alya? I needed to get to the bottom of it.
I looked at the watch and then at Kate who was sitting in front of me. "They're late."
The moment I said those words, the restaurant door opened and Grayson walked in, looking around. He met my eye and a smile spread across his face. It felt like a punch in the gut. He looked exactly how he did back in college. The same happy-go-luc
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