The morning after the interview aired, Ruby woke to find her phone flooded with notifications.
Messages from friends, from strangers, from people she hadn't spoken to in years. The public response had been overwhelming—not just supportive, but transformative. People were sharing their own stories, reaching out to thank her for her honesty, for her courage, for giving them permission to speak their own truths.
Ruby sat up in bed, scrolling through the messages, her heart swelling with each one. There were hundreds of them. Thousands. People from all over the world, telling her that her words had mattered, that her courage had inspired them.
"You're famous," Nicholas murmured from beside her, his voice still rough with sleep, his arm tightening around her waist.
"I'm notorious," she corrected, a smile tugging at her lips. "There's a difference."
