Part 1: When the Past Walks Back Into Your Family

I thought I knew exactly how my future would look once I finally left my hometown behind. Distance, I believed, would soften the sharpest memories. Time would blur the faces I never wanted to see again. And the girl who made my childhood miserable would fade into nothing more than an unpleasant chapter I rarely revisited.

I was wrong.

The call came on an ordinary afternoon. I was sitting on my couch, half-listening to the hum of the city outside my window, when my brother’s name lit up my phone.

“Guess what?” he said, barely containing his excitement. “I’m engaged.”

I smiled automatically. “That’s great news. I’m happy for you.”