I Locked My Window Forever

Summary

At the bonfire party, my friends started teasing Maeve, asking when she was finally going to marry me.

Her expression turned dead serious.

"Did you all lose your minds after living in the city for a few years?" she asked, her voice carrying over the crackle of the flames. "In the Ridge, men don’t take wives, and women don’t take husbands. We only keep the Walk."

The crowd laughed and chimed in, and I forced a smile to match theirs. But a quiet, gnawing anxiety settled deep in my chest, heavy and cold.