(Steven's POV)
I didn't breathe until we were out of the lecture hall.
Michelle walked beside me down the hallway, her steps even, her posture straight, her eyes forward — like she hadn't just been confronted by her ex-friend in a room full of witnesses.
Like she hadn't just said something so quiet and dignified it all but silenced the air around us.
"Lara… I understand you're hurting.
But I won't stand here and let you hurt me too."
Those words still rang in my chest like they had been engraved there.
Michelle wasn't trembling.
She wasn't collapsing.
She wasn't performing bravery.
She was being brave.
And that — somehow — hurt me more than anything Lara had said.
Because I knew.
I knew Michelle had already been pushed too far.
I knew she had already endured more than anyone should.
And yet she still stood there and extended understanding…
while refusing to be wounded again.
It was the kind of strength I'd never seen this close before.
