ALIANA

There is so much peace and quiet in the bathroom.

Soft music seeps faintly through the marble walls. Dim lighting. Mirrors in which you see yourself for what you are .

I plant my hands on the sink and take a breath.

I came in here to escape. To hide. To breathe without the weight of polite smiles and prepared answers. The exhaustion that comes with being okay.

Because I'm not okay.

I have not been okay since the day he left.

Since the day that I woke up alone and abandoned and pregnant.

Since the day I buried my parents without him.

From the day I learned that...