Page 158 of No Need to Run

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DREW

I standinside the house I’ll soon be living in, feeling a bit… overwhelmed.

Sure, I'd owned a house before.

But it was brand new.

I never had to repair anything. I hired people for that.

But this time, I didn’t.

I wanted it that way. Wanted to fix it up myself.

Or so I thought.

And this… well, it was a spur-of-the-moment decision. Something I thought would occupy my mind so I’d stop thinking about Violet.

And being a co-parent of Luna.

And dinner with her and my family.

Yeah. Not working.

Stop it.

Get your ass to work.

I’m not sure where to begin, but there’s a spot that doesn’t need repairs where I want to hang the wooden mail and key holder Ivy gave me. She said it was a better housewarming giftthan flowers or whatever people usually give. I have no idea what those things are, but I love practical. So it’s perfect.

“This shouldn’t be hard. I’ll just put a nail in the wall and hang it,” I say aloud to absolutely no one.

Five minutes later, I’m questioning my sanity.

I stare at the wall.

Then at the hammer in my hand.

Then back at the wall.

“This shouldn’t be this hard,” I mutter.

It’s a nail.

A simple nail.

People do this every day.

I position it carefully.

Lift the hammer.

And—

THWACK.

Pain explodes through my thumb.

“F—” I suck in a breath, dropping the hammer as I grab my hand. “Are you kidding me?”

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