carl never said goodbye. it was just one night, a few angry words that felt too sharp, and he was gone. no calls. no texts. no explanation. the kind of silence that wrapped around her and didn’t let go.

october

she told herself he just needed space. maybe he’d call tomorrow. or the next day. maybe he’d walk back through the door like nothing happened. the days dragged by in grey blurs.

november

people started asking where he went. she lied. said he was busy. said he was fine. every time she smiled, it cracked a little more at the edges.

december

christmas lights blinked on in every window. she didn’t put any up. not this year. not when every street corner looked like a place he’d once kissed her under.

january

she didn’t even make resolutions. what was the point? surviving was enough. breathing through the nights he used to call just to hear her voice was enough.

february came. the first time she saw him again, it felt like a punch she hadn’t braced for. he wasn’t alone. he was laughing with someone else, someone new, someone who didn’t know how soft he could be at 2AM or how he used to hold her like she was breakable.

he glanced up once. didn’t even flinch. just kept walking, hand in hand with a girl who wasn’t her.

and she realized something right then, standing in the cold:

he hadn’t just left. he’d moved on.