Any Trope but You

by Victoria Lavine

I’ve never really been on the receiving end of all this concern, and unfortunately for me, it’s everything I never knew I wanted.

There’s a hollow ache in my chest that goes a little too deep to maybe ever fully heal. But the thing I’ve learned about hollowness—the kind that’s carved from pain—is that the deeper it goes, the more room it leaves for love. And when love finally rushes in, it fills every dark and twisty crevice with a light almost too brilliant to bear. In the dark moments, when all the lights go out, it’s the love from a sister, or a community, or even a romance novel that keeps the empty chambers of your heart from caving in. And right now that’s exactly what I need most.