The way she says it lands like an invisible punch to the chest. My immediate reflex is to search for Lola's EKG on the party group, almost on instinct, as if my brain still expects to find some absurd confirmation that this is real. But there's nothing there, only her rhythmic heart beats…
…And my own imagination stitching together echoes that sound far too similar inside my head.
The girl pulls her hood back and sits down beside me without waiting for permission. The bluish light of the lantern reflects off her shaved head in a way that's almost polished.
"What do you mean, 'it's been a while,' Zhang Xi? We saw each other yesterday."
"Ah…" She tilts her head slightly. "It was a joke."
She has no idea how perfectly that line struck exactly where I'm most vulnerable.
The voice is different. So is the posture. Even the way she breathes between words has nothing to do with it. And still, something in the cadence of it dismantles my defenses for a single second.
