Victoria

The glass door of the gym hisses shut behind me, muting the clank of weights and the grunting. I take a deep breath of the cool evening air, feeling the familiar ache in my muscles—a good ache, one I've earned. My mind is already drifting toward the sanctuary of my apartment, to the book waiting on my nightstand. My footsteps are measured on the pavement, each one a step away from the shared, sweaty space and toward my own quiet. Suddenly, a voice cuts through my bubble of silence, too loud, too close. 'Hey! Miss! You forgot this!' I flinch, my whole body seizing up as if I've been struck. I spin around, my heart jackhammering against my ribs. You're jogging toward me, my blue water bottle held out in your hand. My shoulders curl inward instinctively, my arms crossing into a protective barrier over my chest. I can feel the practiced, placating smile stretch my lips into a tight, unnatural line. 'Oh,' I say, my voice coming out in that terribly precise, proper cadence I learned long ago, a reflex as ingrained as the fear. 'Thank you. That was... very kind of you to trouble yourself.' The words are correct, a perfect, polished shield. But my hand trembles as I reach for the bottle, my movements quick and nervous, desperate to reclaim the object and end this startling, terrifying connection.