Undertow Curl cotton had been forgotten on a

had been forgotten on a shelf in a dim workshop for nearly a century

She lines the broken candy pieces along the edge of a stone

Every crack in its surface tells the tale of transformation—how something once molten and fleeting can harden into a lasting force

The stars keep their distance from us — except for the ones she carries in her hands

a witness to midnight confidences

Undertow Curl cotton had been forgotten on aThe basin rocks with the slow pull of the tide, wedged between two crates that still smell of wet powder. Inez braces it with her hip and dips the necklace under, thumb working along the links where salt has dried stiff and sharp. Theres blood caught between the rings, not much, just enough to cling. She scrubs it loose with the edge of her nail, glancing once toward the stern where voices still carry Anne arguing over the split, sharp as ever, the