Anna arrived at Midnight Sketch Studio that morning like a shadow of herself.
The city outside was alive, cars honking, coffee shops buzzing, people rushing toward their dreams, but none of that warmth reached her. Her shoulders were slightly hunched, her steps slower than usual, her eyes dulled by a weight she hadn't yet figured out how to put down. The confidence she once carried so naturally now clung to her like borrowed clothing, ill-fitting and heavy.
The revolving doors slid open, swallowing her whole.
She barely made it three steps into the lobby before the familiar voice cut through the air.
"Well, well," Claire Hudson drawled, leaning lazily against the reception desk as if she owned the place. Her perfectly shaped lips curled into a smirk that Anna had come to recognize too well. "If it isn't our little miracle hire. You look… terrible today. Did reality finally catch up with you?"
A few nearby employees slowed, pretending not to listen while doing exactly that.
