"Before the walls broke, you promised you wouldn't disappear."
the story begins in a rural town.
The day started like any other—too ordinary to be remembered, if not for what came after.
We were sitting by the old cracked wall behind the small-town school, the one everyone said would collapse "any day now," but never did. Beyond it, the fields stretched wide and quiet, with only the occasional breeze and distant chatter breaking the stillness. You were laughing—loud, careless, the kind that echoed across the open land and made people glance our way.
Skye was laughing—loud, careless, the kind that made people stare and then laugh too, even if they didn't know why.
"Relax," Skye said, nudging me.
I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, if we survive it."
Skye grinned like survival was never a question.
That was the thing about her… Skye made everything feel safe, even when it wasn't. Even when the distant rumble didn't sound like thunder anymore. Even when people in our quiet town started leaving, one by one, carrying bags heavier than they could handle. Even when the easy laughter around us slowly turned into hushed conversations.
But that morning, we ignored all of it.
Because before the walls broke, we still believed nothing ever really would.
And before the day ended… Skye was gone.