{Introduction}

The world around me felt quiet, but inside, my thoughts were a storm. I sat alone on a weathered bench, my fingers tracing the chipped wood as though it could anchor me to the present. The late summer air was heavy, humming with life, yet I felt strangely detached - as though I was standing on the other side of glass, watching everything move without me.
The truth was simple but terrifying: I didn't know where to begin. But I knew I had to. Because this-my story-was no longer just mine. It had become ours.