Ashley let out a slow breath and closed her eyes.
Her arm rested at her side, a plastic tube connected to the needle in her vein.
When she opened her eyes again, her gaze drifted to the blood bag slowly filling above her.
A heaviness settled over her chest, as though a massive boulder were pressing down on it.
For some reason, she felt like crying.
Ashley slowly closed her eyes again, trying to silence the dark thoughts threatening to surface.
Instead, her mind drifted to Liza and Tommy.
The first time she met Liza.
How strangely easy it had been to talk to her, as though they had known each other for years.
Building relationships—whether friendships or simply working alongside others—had always been difficult for Ashley.
Even when she worked as part of a team, she preferred being alone. Not because she thought she was better than anyone else.
She simply didn't know how to be around people.
Friendship?
She had never truly had one. June had come the closest.
