HAZEL Angela was already there when I arrived, and the moment she saw me, she smiled slightly and said, “Someone must be hungry today.”I paused, then gave a small, uncertain nod. “Yeah.... I am.”She served me food without asking for anything else. I was the only one at the table as always during lunch. The silence stretched around me as I ate, my thoughts louder than anything else in the room. Amanda’s face kept flashing in my mind, her voice, the fear in her eyes. Every bite felt automatic, like I wasn’t really there, like I was somewhere else entirely.When I finished, I didn’t leave immediately. Instead, I waited And when Angela came back in, I looked up at her and, for the first time, asked, “Would you help me get ready for tonight?”She stopped immediately giving me all her attention.“Get ready for what?” she asked.“I’m going out with Axel tonight and I want to look great,” I said, not even trying to hide the excitement in my voice.She didn’t respond immediately. Instead
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