Seraphina's Point Of View
"What?"
The word hit the room like a slap.
Not loud. Not screamed. Just sharp, stunned, and disbelieving.
My mom stared at me as if I'd just spoken in another language, her brows knitting together slowly, carefully, like her brain was rewinding the last ten seconds to make sure it hadn't malfunctioned.
"What," she repeated, blinking once, then twice. "What did you just say?"
The air felt thicker all of a sudden, like someone had turned the gravity up without warning. My chest tightened again, that familiar pressure blooming right behind my ribs, but this time I didn't look away.
I nodded.
Slowly.
Once.
"He cheated on me, Mom," I said.
The words tasted bitter on my tongue, sharp and acidic, like biting into something that looked sweet but wasn't. Saying it out loud felt different. Heavier. Realer. Like I was carving it into stone instead of just thinking it.
Her mouth parted slightly.
