Day 8: Vex’s Journal

The wind carried that whisper again tonight, like a promise from the river. I should’ve stayed in the hollow, but the thought of you—your voice, how you said my name when the water was cold—kept me walking. My stomach’s been grumbling for hours, but I didn’t stop to eat. Just kept moving, kicking stones, watching the sky shift from pale gold to deep purple. I found myself near the old ruins again. Not the ones with the broken walls, but the ones that feel like they’re holding their breath. I don’t know why I keep going back there. Maybe it’s the way the shadows stretch, like they’re waiting for something. Or maybe it’s the way the wind moves, like it’s trying to tell me something. I heard a sound today—a rustle in the grass, but I didn’t look. Just kept walking, like I was chasing the wind itself. Now, lying here in the hollow, the stars are so close it feels like they’re touching my skin. I can’t stop thinking about what you said by the river. It’s not the words, but the way you looked at me, like you knew things I didn’t. Like you were waiting for me to say something. But I don’t know what to say. I just want to sleep, but my mind’s too full. Maybe tomorrow I’ll find the quiet I need. Maybe I’ll find you.