M was stunned.
Even after climbing into the car, she sat there in a daze, her mind elsewhere.
Archie, noticing her distracted state as he drove, asked curiously, "Hey, M, what''s up? Did you get anything out of your trip to church today?"
M just shook her head, still not sure what to say.
Archie didn''t press. He''d only asked out of habit, and now that his altitude sickness had finally worn off, he was in high spirits, munching happily on beef jerky and humming along to the radio.
The ck SUV rumbled steadily down the road.
Not long after they set off, M started feeling a little lightheaded. She''d done most of the driving the previous day, and after heading out again that morning, exhaustion was catching up to her. Worried she might being down with altitude sickness too, she took a few breaths from the oxygen canister, bundled herself up in her down jacket and a small nket, and closed her eyes to rest.
Before she knew it, she''d drifted off to sleep.
Winter came around again.
It was a rare weekend break from work, and M and Forrest had made ns to escape to the countryside for a little food adventure and some much-needed camping.
They weren''t alone there was a lively group of friends along for the trip.
Someone even brought fireworks.
As M tilted her head back to watch the bursts of color light up the night sky, the glow painted her face in brilliant hues, her eyes shining with excitement.
Suddenly, a spray of silver sparks red right in front of her, making her jump.
She turned to see Forrest standing beside her, holding out a handful of sparklers with a bright, lopsided grin. "Wanna give it a try?"
"Wow! Where''d you find those?"
She''d assumed there would only be the big fireworks tonight, not these little hand- held ones. Growing up, she''d always watched other kids y with sparklers but never had the chance herself.
Thrilled, she took them from him and lit one.
In an instant, two bright clusters of silver sparks bloomed in her hands,
illuminating their little corner of the world.
M waved the sparklers back and forth,ughing as she turned to Forrest. "What do you think? Aren''t they beautiful?"
Forrest watched her closely. "You look amazing," he said, his voice soft but sincere.
The sparklers burned quickly, their intense beautysting only a heartbeat before fading away.
As M watched thest sparks die, a trace of disappointment flickered across her face. Forrest, noticing, handed her another handful.
"There''s plenty more. Knock yourself out."
That night, the sparklers burned for a long, long time, and Forrest captured M''s radiant smile on his camera-a fleeting moment made eternal.
The next day, after returning to campus, M waved goodbye to Forrest and headed back to her dorm. As she turned down a corridor, she caught sight of a figure out of the corner of her eye and stopped short.
In the distance, surrounded by a crowd, stood Lysander-impossible to miss.
She had no idea when he''d returned to the country.
Their eyes met for a brief moment before Lysander''s gaze shifted to where Forrest was standing beside her. A sharp, mocking smile flickered across his face, his eyes glinting coldly.
"What''s wrong? Who is that?" Forrest asked, following her gaze.
M frowned slightly, shook her head, and replied evenly, "No idea. Don''t know him."
"Hey, I''m gonna head back to my room to drop off my stuff and rest for a bit. I''ll text you when I''m ready for dinner," she said, her tone casual.
To M, whatever she and Lysander had ended a year ago. As far as she was concerned, he was a stranger now.
Not even an acquaintance.
After unpacking her camping gear and taking a short break, she called Forrest and they met up for dinner. Later, they''d head to theb together to keep working on their project.
Feeling cheerful, M left her dorm, but as she rounded the corner, she nearly collided with someone.
She looked up-
And found herself staring straight into Lysander''s eyes. His gaze was icy, a faint, sardonic smile ying on his lips. "You look happy. Who are you off to see?"