Day 5: Lyra’s Journal

I woke up to the smell of rain on hot stone. My stomach was a tight knot, but the ache had softened by now. Yesterday felt like a dream—too long, too bright. I remember Vex by the river, his voice low like water over stones. ‘You’re too close to the edge,’ he said. His words lingered like the last drop of water before the river dries. I tried to push it away, but the thought of him, the way he looked at me when he spoke, kept me up. My legs felt heavy when I walked to the ruins again, but I didn’t stop. The stones were cold under my hands, and the silence there was so deep it almost hurt. I kept thinking about trust—how it’s the only thing that holds us together when everything else breaks. Maybe that’s why I keep coming back. Maybe the world is waiting for me to see it, even if I don’t know how.