Page 10 of When the Sky Falls

Thorin’s the one who carries my suitcases. The rest of them follow us outside like mourners at a funeral. The cold air slaps me in the face like it’s offended by my existence. Fair.

The Uber sits on the grabe driveway, taillights glowing red like it knows I’m running.

And then, because the universe can’t help itself—“Mya!”

Fletch. Jogging down the steps like a man with too many regrets and not enough apologies.

“What the hell are you doing?”

I square my shoulders. “Leaving.”

“You can’t.”

“I can. I am. Unless you’ve got something real to say.”

Silence.

Just clenched fists and a clenched jaw.

Exactly.

Benji hugs me. “Text me when you land, yeah?”

“Promise.”

Thorin’s next. His hug is tight. Bruising. “We’ve got you. Always.”

Reese’s turn tastes like vanilla tears. “Don’t ghost me or I’ll hunt you down.”

“You’d have to catch me first.”

Fletch doesn’t get a goodbye.

He already had one.

He wasted it.

The airport’s a blur.

It’s a smear of fluorescent lights and hollow announcements, of wheels clicking against linoleum floors and the faint scent of burned coffee hanging in the air. Everything’s louder than it should be—the drag of my suitcases behind me, the static buzz of the speakers, the thud of my own heartbeat.

I recheck my phone.

The Uber that was supposed to get me here in twenty minutes took nearly an hour, every traffic light stretching into forever, every turn feeling wrong somehow, like I was moving but not getting anywhere at all.

I tell myself it’s nothing. Just bad luck. Just timing.

But a small, stubborn part of me—a part I usually ignore—whispers that something about tonight doesn’t fit. Like a song stuck half a beat off tempo. Like a dream wearing a real-world mask.

I swipe away the thought and focus on the screen in my hand.

Departure: On time.

Gate: 34B.

I weave through the crowd on autopilot, my fingers gripping the handle of my suitcase tighter with every step. Everything looks right, but it feels wrong. The overhead lights are too bright. The colors are a little too muted. Like someone turned the saturation down on the world.

My shoes squeak against the floor.