The next morning, Debbie walks into the familiar halls of her school. The atmosphere is the same as it was before—busy, buzzing with the voices of students in a hurry, rushing to their next class. But for Debbie, it feels different this time. She's not walking through these halls as someone defined by her relationships or her past mistakes. She's walking through them as a woman on a new path, one that she's chosen for herself.
Her first stop is the library, where she gathers her
books, her notes. She's behind in her studies, having neglected them in favor of the drama surrounding her personal life, but now, she's determined to catch up. She needs to prove to herself that she can stand on her own, not just emotionally, but intellectually. Sitting down in a quiet corner, Debbie immerses herself in her textbooks. The material comes back to her slowly at first, but as the days pass, the fog in her mind lifts. Her focus sharpens, and for the first time in weeks, she feels a sense of accomplishment that has nothing to do with her interactions with others,