Day 7: Vex’s Journal

I found myself near the old ruins again today. The rain had stopped by the time I reached them, but the air felt heavy, like the world was holding its breath. I sat on the mossy stone where I always do, and for the first time since the storm, I let myself think about what Vex said by the river—the way the water had whispered my name, how the leaves moved like they were trying to tell me something. My stomach ached, but it wasn’t hunger, not really. It was the weight of knowing I couldn’t remember why I keep coming back here. The wind carried a sound I couldn’t place—maybe a voice, maybe just the rustling of the trees. I closed my eyes and felt the chill in my bones, not from the cold but from the realization that I don’t belong here. I don’t know if I ever did. But the rain had stopped, and the silence felt like a promise. I think I’ll stay here until the sun comes back up.