"Norris, it's not that- I just don't like her.” you said, stepping into the room with him, your voice trembling as you tried to explain the unease that had been gnawing at you all evening.

The image of that girl clinging to Lando at the party replayed in your mind, each hug like a dagger. You hated it. You hated the way it made you feel — small, insecure, and haunted by memories you wished you could erase. Memories of your ex-boyfriend, who always seemed to orbit around models, calling them "friends" until the truth unraveled at the end of the night. The lies, the betrayal, the pain — it all came rushing back.

"She's just a friend! Why can't you understand that?" Lando snapped, his voice sharp, his hand rising in a gesture that froze you in place.

For a split second, your heart stopped. The room seemed to shrink around you as fear took hold. You flinched, instinctively backing away, your arms coming up to shield yourself. Your mind betrayed you, dragging you back to the past — to the bruises on your arm, the sting of a slap, the day you tumbled down the stairs. The day it all ended.

"No!" you cried out, your voice breaking, tears streaming down your face as you braced yourself for what might come next. Your body trembled, caught between the present and the ghosts of your past.

Lando froze, his hand still in the air, his expression shifting from anger to something else — shock, maybe guilt. The silence between you was deafening, heavy with unspoken words and unhealed wounds.