the tv's off but there's still a hum. like the world is holding its breath. old pictures… they look like strangers, those women. the ache in my jaw reminds me that I'm not her anymore. The body remembers even when the mind tries to forget. I catch myself in the mirror sometimes and there's a flicker of who I used to be, a ghost in my own eyes – and then I tighten my core, press my feet into the floor, and remember who I am now.