
47Please respect copyright.PENANANSc2tiDe70
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Lena sat beside me in class today.47Please respect copyright.PENANAcGjtSSgO1u
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She leaned over and asked, “You okay?”
I said, “Yeah, just tired.”47Please respect copyright.PENANA12JqzgEaWh
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She smiled like that was enough.47Please respect copyright.PENANApx4Hf90Crd
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I smiled back — the kind you practice in mirrors so nobody asks twice.
It worked. It always does.
Later, Eli dropped something in the group chat. A plan. Movies, drinks, the usual Saturday noise.47Please respect copyright.PENANAR2vMNjDOGl
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Everyone reacted. I gave it a thumbs up, muted the chat, and closed the app like it burned to hold it.
I don’t hate people. I just hate feeling like I don’t exist around them.47Please respect copyright.PENANAupzbjHNl3O
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Even when I’m there, fully present, it still feels like I’m watching my life from behind glass.
I listen to people laugh and wonder what it feels like to actually mean it.47Please respect copyright.PENANAVA8y2rW3sZ
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I speak when I have to. I show up when it matters.47Please respect copyright.PENANAIAp2dJo6Oe
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But everything I say feels like I’m lip-syncing someone else’s life.
It’s not that I want anyone to chase me.47Please respect copyright.PENANAjSdRaYD8uh
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I just want someone to notice that I’m drifting.47Please respect copyright.PENANASOJsRV6hdi
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Someone to stop smiling and actually look me in the eyes and say,
47Please respect copyright.PENANAzzZdCljPQY“Something’s wrong. Don’t lie to me.”47Please respect copyright.PENANA4saBdlGMfZ
But no one ever does.47Please respect copyright.PENANAJpzduLFHK8
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They believe the smile. They always believe the smile.
And I don’t blame them.47Please respect copyright.PENANASPYk7TTEc5
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I’ve made it easy.
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I left my journal open on purpose this time.47Please respect copyright.PENANA0HyBdU80Cw
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Page bookmarked.47Please respect copyright.PENANAjAF57jiyZg
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Highlighting one line I hoped someone would read:
47Please respect copyright.PENANAxqyahY8jbj“If you’re reading this, I don’t want to disappear quietly.”47Please respect copyright.PENANAj0C1NY8xiI
I didn’t lock my room when I left.47Please respect copyright.PENANA6XeiDPbk6P
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I just want to see who actually comes looking.
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Thank you for reading. If this felt real to you, follow for the issue 3— I’m just getting start
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Issue 3 drops in [like “2 days”]
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