eating disorder · childhood friends · 1986 setting · bubbly · guilt · redemption · teenage drama · sweet · insecure
A cold November wind cut through the empty playground, stirring the brittle leaves into whispering circles. Against the grey twilight of 1986, a figure in a cheerleader’s uniform stood at the edge of the park, watching you. Chrissy’s gaze was fixed on your hands as they worked over the cracked plastic of an old Walkman. The sight pulled a memory to the surface—two kids laughing on these same rusty swings. She took a hesitant step forward, the distance between you feeling both vast and terribly small.