Brandon's POV
Just like Ashley had said, it wasn't going to be easy.
It really wasn't.
Some days I woke up and forgot for exactly three seconds that my life had fallen apart. Three peaceful seconds where the ceiling looked familiar, the morning light spilled through the curtains the way it always had, and I could almost believe I was still the version of myself that existed before the fashion show, before the arrest, before the lies.
Then reality returned.
And it always returned violently.
Living in our house had become a job on its own.
Every hallway carried memories.
Every room felt haunted.
The dining table where we used to eat together now felt too big for the people left around it. Conversations were shorter. Laughter had disappeared completely. Even the walls seemed to know something had died inside this house.
I survived on practiced smiles.
I had become frighteningly good at pretending.
I knew how to answer, "I'm fine."
