I moved into a smaller place for a while.
My life became less impressive on paper and much easier to recognize as my own.
I stopped replaying Ethan’s smile eventually.
But I never forgot what it taught me.
The loudest person in a confrontation is not always the one with power.
Sometimes power is a one-inch opening in a car window.
Sometimes it is a notebook opened in a dark kitchen.
Sometimes it is a recording nobody remembered was there.
And sometimes the most important thing you can do when someone believes they have already written your ending is refuse to perform the part they gave you.
