𝗧𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻'𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗺𝗲

CHAPTER 1

PART A

Jessica woke to sunlight spilling across her wall, too bright for how heavy her chest felt.

She groaned and turned away from the window. Sleep never stayed long with her. It slipped away, leaving memories behind like unfinished conversations.

“What the…” she muttered.

The door opened without a knock.

“Jessica,” Alice said, already dressed. “Get up. We’ll be late.”

Jessica pulled herself upright, rubbing her eyes. “The mall won’t disappear if we’re a few minutes late.”

“It might,” Alice replied. “Festive season. You know how crazy it gets.”

Jessica sighed. “Yeah. I know.”

Alice studied her for a moment. “Did you sleep?”

Jessica hesitated. “Enough.”

Another lie. Another morning.

The mall buzzed with life—lights, laughter, music playing too loudly. Jessica tried to lose herself in routine: arranging displays, greeting customers, pretending she wasn’t always on edge.

Then she collided with someone.

“Oh—” she gasped.

She looked up.

And time stopped.

Her breath caught painfully in her chest. Her heart slammed so hard she thought others could hear it.

Stanley.

He stood there like a memory that had refused to fade. Older, familiar, painfully unchanged.

“Jessica?” he said softly. “Is it really you?”

Her body reacted before her mind could—her hands shook, her legs weakened.

Alice appeared instantly beside her.

“No,” Alice said sharply. “Not today.”

Stanley’s eyes flicked to Alice. “I didn’t expect this,” he said. “I’ve thought about her every day.”

Jessica swallowed hard. She hated that his voice still did that to her. Hated that some part of her still recognized him before the pain did.

“You shouldn’t be here,” Alice said.

Stanley’s gaze returned to Jessica. “You look… the same.”

That was when Jessica felt it—the familiar spiral, pulling her under.

And suddenly, breathing felt impossible

PART B

Alice didn’t wait.

She grabbed Jessica’s wrist and dragged her toward the nearest restroom.

“Let go of me,” Jessica whispered, though she didn’t resist.

The door shut. The lock clicked.

The noise of the mall faded, replaced by Jessica’s uneven breathing.

“I can’t—” she said, clutching her chest. “I can’t breathe.”

Alice knelt in front of her. “Jess. Look at me. You’re here. You’re safe.”

Jessica slid down against the sink, her body trembling violently.

“He looked at me,” she whispered. “Like nothing ever happened. Like time erased everything.”

Alice’s voice softened. “Time doesn’t heal wounds that were never allowed to close.”

Jessica let out a shaky laugh that sounded like a sob. “The worst part?” she said. “I still felt him.”

Alice went still.

“I hate him,” Jessica continued. “But some stupid, broken part of me still loves him. And I don’t know how to kill that feeling.”

Alice took her hands firmly. “Love doesn’t disappear just because it was poisoned. That doesn’t mean it was right.”

Jessica squeezed her eyes shut. Images surfaced—good memories tangled with unbearable loss, affection wrapped tightly around pain.

“I survived,” she whispered. “But I never moved on.”

Alice nodded. “Because time didn’t heal you. You just learned how to live with the wound.”

Jessica opened her eyes and stared at her reflection. Her face was pale, but her eyes were burning.

“He can’t just walk back into my life,” she said.

“No,” Alice replied. “And you don’t owe him forgiveness. Or explanations. Or closure.”

Jessica stood slowly, steadying herself.

“But if he’s here,” she said quietly, “then the past isn’t done with me.”