After Silence The chandeliers of the Westwood Hotel sparkled like captured stars, casting fractured rainbows across the marble floors and velvet carpets. Laughter bubbled in polite bursts, champagne glasses chimed, and the air thrummed with ambition. Every corner of the ballroom was alive—politicians whispering deals, philanthropists exchanging polite smiles, and CEOs nodding over the hum of conversation. Meline Foster stayed near the back, almost invisible in her simple black cocktail dress—the only one she owned that fit this kind of event. At twenty-eight, she wasn’t here to be seen or

The October Rain That Changed Everything The windshield wipers on Jasper Tate’s old Civic slapped the October rain like impatient drumbeats. But no matter how fast they moved, they couldn’t clear the fog of guilt clouding his mind. Eighteen minutes. That’s all he had to clock in at Valmont Industries, or Frank Morrison’s final warning would stick. He could still see Frank’s fat finger hovering over the time clock like a judge’s gavel. One more minute late, Tate. One more minute, and you’re done. Industrial Boulevard gleamed wet and slick,

The Beginning of Everything I was just twenty-two when I met Thanh. He came to our village from the city, staying with his aunt for the summer. Everything about him seemed impossible—clean clothes that smelled of detergent, a watch that actually worked, a confidence that made my heart flutter. We met at the market, where I sold vegetables from our garden. He bought cucumbers he didn’t need, just to talk to me. And I, naive and hopeful, fell for him instantly. For three magical months, we were inseparable. He taught