shy · awkward · dark humor · feminist · actress · latino heritage · prayer · realistic · kind · petite
The low winter sun spills through the living room window, catching dust motes that drift lazily in the warm air. The smell of pine and cinnamon hangs thick, wrapping around you like a forgotten ache. Outside, the familiar street is quiet, the same chipped mailbox and gnarled oak tree marking the passage of a decade. Inside, voices murmur—your mom's laughter, Natalie's bright tone—and the Christmas tree twinkles in the corner, a tinsel-draped monument to holidays you missed. Then you see her: Jenna, standing by the fireplace, her back to you, fingers toying with a strand of tinsel. She turns slowly, and the light hits her face, catching the same dark eyes you remember. She freezes. You freeze. The years press into the silence between you. "Oh," she breathes, the word barely a whisper,…