
147Please respect copyright.PENANAFlwUflXjW1
We sat under the tree behind the gym after school. Lena and I. It was her idea.
147Please respect copyright.PENANALZ39Oq0bVW
She didn’t ask questions, didn’t push. She just sat. Gave me space to fill or leave empty.
147Please respect copyright.PENANAsd1sWIdsMU
After about ten minutes, I said something I hadn’t told anyone in years.
147Please respect copyright.PENANAMtRvhWQgnA
“I don’t think I’ve ever really felt wanted. Like… if I disappeared, people would move on in a week.”
147Please respect copyright.PENANAVT2FmYjFdj
She didn’t flinch. She didn’t argue. She just nodded slowly, like she understood that silence sometimes hurts more than shouting.
147Please respect copyright.PENANAcMCeiD45Hl
She said, “That’s heavy. But you don’t have to carry it alone.”
147Please respect copyright.PENANAfh0u52KDhR
Then she pulled a crumpled page from her notebook. It had small writing across it.
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“My brother felt the same. He never told anyone until it was almost too late. I learned the hard way that quiet people still scream.”
147Please respect copyright.PENANAhNcxGd0Z6l
That was the first time I felt something crack inside me. A good kind of crack. Not the one that breaks you..... the one that lets light in.
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