The knock came just after sunrise.
It was the kind of knock that instantly tells you something is wrong. Sharp. Urgent. Unavoidable.
By the time I opened the door, two police officers were standing on the porch.
In that moment, every ordinary thought vanished.
The night before had been one of the happiest evenings I’d experienced in years. Prom wasn’t supposed to be life-changing. I had almost skipped it entirely. After everything I had been through, dressing up and pretending life was normal felt impossible.
But somehow, I went.
And somehow, I met Daniel.
He wasn’t the loudest person in the room. He didn’t demand attention or try to impress anyone. He simply appeared beside me with a warm smile and an easy confidence that made me feel comfortable almost immediately.
When he asked me to dance, I hesitated.
Not because I didn’t want to.
Because I had spent so long feeling broken that being seen felt unfamiliar.
Yet Daniel never treated me like someone who needed pity.
He treated me like everyone else.
We laughed. We danced. We talked for hours.
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