Evette pulls open the drawer of her desk, fingers brushing against the smooth leather of a hot pink journal, a gift from her sister on her 14th birthday. She had never used it, mostly because the bright color felt too loud, too not her, with its neatly embossed golden "E" on the cover.
But right now, she doesn't care about the color.
Grabbing a pencil, she flips to the first blank page, the paper crisp and untouched. Without hesitation, she scribbles two names in quick, uneven strokes.
Emerson + Margaret
Evette taps the pencil against the page, staring at the names. Emerson + Margaret. The way they look together, scrawled in hurried strokes, makes something in her chest tighten.
I won't forget Emerson.
There's something about him—his warning, his disappearance—that feels unfinished, like a story cut off before the final chapter.
It seems like he was trying to say something.
Evette's eyes skim over the name again. Bradley Johnson.
"An exceptional student with a sharp mind and even sharper ambition. Now a renowned banker."
She tilts her head, studying his photo. Tanned skin, blond hair, an almost too-perfect posture. He looks like the kind of guy who always had a plan, always knew exactly where he was going in life.
And yet… something about him looks familiar
Her grip on the yearbook tightens as she racks her brain, trying to place him. Had she seen his name somewhere before? Had she met him?
Her eyes fall on her purse, still sitting open on the desk. The memory of Evan's gift rushes back. She'd shoved it in there earlier, distracted by everything going on. She's been so caught up in the mystery of the photo, she hasn't even thought about the small velvet box until now.
She reaches into the purse and pulls it out, the box light in her hands. Her fingers hesitate for a moment before she flips it open.
Inside lies the delicate silver necklace Evan gave her this morning. It's simple, yet beautiful, nothing too extravagant, just a subtle hint of elegance. At the end of the chain hangs a heart-shaped pendant, smooth and polished, almost glowing in the dim light of her room.
Her breath catches when she sees the engraving on it:
E + E
Evett runs her fingers over the letters, the weight of the message settling into her chest. Evan and Evette.
A quiet smile tugs at her lips. The necklace feels like a promise, something that holds her to him in a way words can't express. She's not sure why, but the moment feels sacred, as if the world outside could fall apart, and this tiny, simple thing would still remain constant.
But even as she lets the warmth of the gift settle over her, that nagging feeling creeps back into her mind, unanswered questions swirling around the memory of the photo. The smile on her father's face. The strange quote beneath it.
Still, she holds the necklace in her hand, staring at it for a moment longer. Maybe she doesn't have all the answers. Maybe there are more things to uncover, more mysteries to solve.
But for now, she lets herself believe that this, this necklace, this love, is something pure. Something real.