Chapter 34 A Grand Show

• Andrea’s POV
• By the time Sophia and I completed our fourth lap around the mall, exhaustion clung to me like a second skin. My hips no longer screamed with pain, but every step felt labored, my movements uneven as I unconsciously favored my left side.
• I trailed beside Sophia, who chatted incessantly, her words tumbling over each other as she recounted her escapades in cities I’d only ever dreamed of or glimpsed in glossy magazines. She spoke of shopping trips in Paris, New York, and Milan, while I nodded and smiled as if I wasn’t barely keeping up. I appreciated her friendliness, but the endless walking was making it harder to maintain the pretense of interest.