"I'LL BE HOME by ten. love you too." zoey lightly smiled before ending the call, then sent her dad her location after swiping out of facetime. as the message finally went through, she let out a sigh, then opened her camera app and ran her hands through the ends of her hair.
she finally felt pretty, a feeling that had been absent for a while. for the first time in a long time, she actually felt good about how she looked. she began to eat, slowly realizing that she was on her own now—she couldn't rely on anyone to save her.
the thought of disappointing her mom was the sole force that kept her going. zoey was known for her resilience, and even though she had been struggling for the past few months, she was gonna try to at least pick herself back up on her own
her dad had dropped her off at the school and then called her back within minutes, as for some reason, caleb wasn't coming to pick her up anymore. zoey literally suffered from nightmares about the time caleb asked her out; he had been nothing short of strange.
even though she considered herself a little weird, she hadn't realized just how odd he truly was.
zoey reached into her purse to locate her mini perfume and give herself a spritz of body mist before entering the school. as she rummaged through her purse, a crumpled paper fell out alongside her perfume.
she furrowed her eyebrows, bending down to retrieve both items.
opening the paper, she quickly realized it what it was, confused by how it had ended up in her purse.
after briefly considering, zoey crumpled the paper and tucked it back into her purse, unwilling to throw it away. she sprayed a few mists of the vanilla-scented mist before pausing, lost in thought.
zoey's legs ached from the standing in place, prompting her to opt for a brisk entrance as she tugged on the front door.
upon stepping into the school, the quiet ambience from the outside gradually gave way to the increase of music emanating from the gymnasium.
sensing her own unease, zoey paused and released a shaky breath before mustering the courage to open the door. an unfamiliar sense of anxiousness washed over her, a feeling she couldn't quite place and one that only served to heighten her apprehension.
with a dismissive gesture, she wiped her sweaty palms and then ventured into the gym. once inside, she scanned the area in search of caleb, but he was conspicuously absent. frowning slightly, zoey continued forward, making a effort to navigate the space in her high heels.
while she walked she took note of how well the gym was decorated. the dim, enchanting ambiance within the gym was brought to life by the decorations adorning the space. delicate strands of twinkling fairy lights cast a warm, inviting glow while intricately designed paper lanterns swayed gently overhead.
