my alarm clock cut t

00

ooth, unblemished, without the faint scars from the IV drips. I touched my stomach

a dream. I

time. Healthy, with light in her eyes, not the hollowed-out shell I had become. I was twenty-four again, living i

, cold and sharp

l. Liam' s voice, not full of co

u didn't lose enough weight. The wedding is in two

had starved myself, run until my joints screamed, and finally, let the

nd. My maid of honor. She held my han

d, dabbing a tissue at my dry eyes. "You tried so

omfort then. Now, I k

post-op infection. A rare, almost magical curse had linked us. It was a bond I had unknowingly forged

Maya had been t

just vanish. It transferred to her. But it didn't stay as fat. The curse, fueled by her envy and my desperation, refined it. It became vita

riend. She was a parasite,

fading, replaced by a cold, hard clarity. I wasn't the weak, naive Chloe anymore

just going to play

on the nightst

carpet. I let it buzz a few more times bef

," I

you were starting your new workout plan to

conversation that start

mile that the old Chloe

honey. "I'm just getting my workout clo

eply, the lie tasting like