I didn't always notice how much my life had started to move in constant motion until I had no real stillness left to return to. Meetings, reports, decisions that shaped entire branches of the pack's business structure—it all blended into one long stretch of responsibility. Even rest didn't feel like rest anymore. It felt like waiting for the next problem to arrive.
There were days I could ignore the fatigue. And then there were days like this, where it settled deep in my bones, like my body was carrying more than just exhaustion. It felt like something under the surface was always alert, always listening, even when I tried to shut everything down.
That was why Jared's presence mattered more than I admitted out loud.
