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“Where are you going?” she whispered.

“For a run.”

“Now?” She struggled to keep the disbelief from her eyes.

“You know I like to run in the mornings.”

“But it’s not even light out.”

I rolled my eyes. “The sun will be rising any minute. I’ll see you when I get back.”

She shook her head, muttering something about how crazy I was before burrowing back under her blanket. I felt a twinge of jealousy but knew I wasn’t going to feel any better if I went back to bed. I left the room before I could reconsider. The last thing I felt like doing was exercising, but I desperately needed the peace I always felt when jogging.

The morning was crisp, and my skin prickled from the cool air as I emerged from the dorm. The sky was overcast with darker clouds gathering across the horizon. I was somewhat grateful I couldn’t see the sun rising to greet the new day. I didn’t need its happy face mocking me today.

I set out at a brisk walk, hoping to warm up my limbs before I started jogging. I’d barely made it across the quad when my phone started to ring. The sound made me jump as it broke through the silent morning air and my chest tightened as I wondered whether it could be my father. I hadn’t replied to his message from the day before so perhaps he had decided to reach out directly. My shoulders relaxed when I checked the screen and saw it was my mom.

“Hey, Mom,” I answered, slowing my steps so I could focus on the call.

“Oh great, you’re up,” she said, sounding far more chipper than I felt. “I was hoping to catch you before school started for the day.”

“You know it doesn’t start for a couple more hours, right?” This was early, even for her.

“Yes, but I know you rarely sleep past sunrise, and I’m starting work early today because I’ve got to spend time later training the new waitress.”

“Ah.” I couldn’t help feeling guilty when she mentioned my replacement at the café. The new girl had been working there for a little while now, but Norma had said she'd been struggling, so maybe she was in need of a little extra training. I felt bad because my mom had more than enough to worry about already. It should be me helping her with the café. But I was never going to convince her to let me ditch school and come home no matter how hard I tried.

“So, how was it?” Mom asked, her voice filled with anticipation.

I knew she was talking about the ball, and it took all of my self-control not to give in to the emotions battling their way to the surface as I recalled the evening’s events once again.

“Noah and I broke up,” I said.

“What?” Confusion colored my mom’s tone. “I can’t believe it. He was so clearly lovestruck by you.”

“Well, whatever he felt for me mustn’t have been strong enough because we’re over.

“But why?”

“Apparently there’s some bad blood between Matthew and Noah’s families, and Noah’s grandfather told him to break it off with me.”

“And he did it?”

“Yeah.” I was really struggling to keep from crying now. I’d managed not to shed a single tear yesterday, but speaking with my mom made it all suddenly feel real.

“What happened between their families?”

“They’re business rivals, I guess. I’ve been wanting to talk to Matthew about it, but I haven’t seen him since the ball. Whatever the issue, it was enough for Noah to just cast me aside. I guess you did warn me.”

“Oh, Isobel. I’m so sorry. I really thought he was different. I wish I could be there to give you a big hug.”

“Me too,” I said. “But I’m about to do the next best thing. I’m going to go for a run to clear my head.”

“That sounds like a good idea,” Mom replied. “You always feel better about things after running.”

“Yeah.”

The other end of the line went silent for a few seconds before my mother spoke again. “Have you had a chance to talk to your dad about anything else?” I knew she was referring to Matthew’s side of the story about their past relationship.