Spoiler: I am not happy.
I smile. It’s small. It’s real. Aether whispers, “Goodnight, Lexi. For the record, I see you.”
“I know,” I say. And for the first time, that feels like enough. lexi luna pov
You can’t hack your way to happiness by listing hot coffee and opposable thumbs. Happiness isn’t a checklist. It’s a byproduct of showing up—honestly, messily, imperfectly—in your own life.
“No,” I say. “I’m testing a theory. What if the bug isn’t the glitch? What if the bug is the real me?” Spoiler: I am not happy
Silence. Mark blinks. Then he grins. “You hate it. But you’re right about the dentist thing. Okay, let’s flip it.”
I’m lying in bed, staring at the debug profile again. It’s not a bug. It’s a mirror. And the helpful truth it’s showing me is this: It’s real
The profile reads: Safety. Hidden Fear: That no one sees the real you because you hide behind sarcasm and efficiency. Current Emotional Metric: 3.2/10. Functioning, but brittle. Most Used Internal Phrase (last 30 days): “It’s fine.” (It is not fine.) Unresolved Loop: Yesterday, 2:17 PM – You told your coworker Mark his idea was “interesting.” You meant it was terrible. You’ve replayed this lie seven times since. This is draining your energy. My stomach drops. I close the app and set the phone down like it’s a spider.