HE NEVER LEFT.

's car smelled like vanilla. A very comforting contrast from the antiseptic scent of the hospital corridors I p

silence as he turned on his turn signal. He didn't

's been like that since we were little kids. I think he still thin

at him. "Fair enough. Today is about escaping. No hospi

every other thing stressing me out, being with Daniel felt effortless. He was compl

t street. It had a chalkboard outside, displaying the homemade pastries and freshly brewe

e. "My favorite hiding spot. I come here every ti

pped out. I realized that I hadn't thought about the

ched out for my hand and walked me into the cafe. As we reached th

miss Lawso

e air was filled with aromas of chocolate, coffe

pts to reach into my purse. We grabbed our drinks, a Chocolate milk latte for me and bla

u guys been frien

re automatically destined to be friends." I laughed. "One time, wh

felt good to talk to him about my l

tion focused on me. "Tell me about Maya. When you're not saving lives in th

ust work and sleep. The hospital takes up so much time. But I used to love writing. I h

p. "That's incredible. What k

e of my cup. "I like trying to figure out how pieces fit

day staring at codes. It's stressful, but I love it. Everything has a reason. If som

hile I was with Jason. A digital footprint. If someone was doing that to me, there had to be

ated," I said, my fo

k after my dad. Speaking of which, thank you again for yesterday. You were so good

"You can tell how much he loves yo

fter that, it was just the two of us. Then I got into a really bad relationship where I felt like I was constantly walking on eggshells, losing mysel

ingers gently touching the back of

ell yet, but you're kind

elt completely seen, not as a secret to be kept , but just as myself. We sat by the

I pulled it out, expecting a message from my sister, but my smile

text fr