Beneath The Stars

This wasn’t supposed to be my life.

Not like this.

Not now.

Sometimes I wonder—did I make the right choices? What if I could go back, just once? Maybe I wouldn’t have gone to the beach that day. Maybe everything would be different.

But I’m getting ahead of myself.

Let me start from the beginning.

You want a little backstory? Alright.

My name is Chasity Osborne. I’m 26 years old, and I work as a nurse at the county jail. Sounds strange to some people, but honestly, it’s a great job. I’ve met people I never expected to care about—men and women behind bars who have taught me more about life than any textbook ever could.

It’s also where I met my best friend, Renee Satsori.

Renee is also a nurse. She’s twenty-eight and one of the most fearless women I’ve ever known. We travel whenever we get the chance—Singapore just last week, and Thailand next on the list. I lean on her more than I’d probably ever admit out loud. Her advice hits hard, and her stories hit even harder.

And then there’s Jason Gabonaz.

Correctional officer. Marine. Loyal to the bone.

He’s thirty and the oldest of four siblings. Jason enlisted right out of high school, but when his father suffered a stroke, he came back home and joined the reserves. Strong doesn’t even begin to describe him, and “stand-up guy” doesn’t quite do him justice either.

Ashley Cortez rounds out our circle.

Another nurse. I met her through Renee—they went to nursing school together. Ashley is the kind of woman who glows the moment she walks into a room. At nearly thirty-five, she has the energy of someone ten years younger and the wisdom of someone twice her age. She’s been everywhere, seen everything, and she doesn’t sugarcoat the truth.

Ashley tells you exactly who she is before you even ask—flaws and all.

And somehow… she makes it look graceful.

From twenty-one to twenty-three, life was beautiful.

I graduated with my RN, landed a job I actually loved, moved into my own place, bought a car, made new friends, and started traveling the world one trip at a time.

It was everything I had dreamed of.

Everything I thought my life was supposed to be.

But then I turned twenty-four.

And the world I thought I knew—the life I thought was mine—started to unravel.