THE FIRST TIME you check the online map for the postcode that you think about all the time its soothing It lulls you in a way you could never have anticipated Youre drunk and its late and the next day

You understand that this map, this postcode, this obsession, is not about the place itself. It is about the feeling it gives you, the sense of safety and familiarity, the illusion of control. It is about the ghosts you summon, the memories you hold onto, the person you used to be. It is about the fear of the unknown, the fear of change, the fear of being alone. It is about the desperation to feel something, anything, even if it is pain.

You leave the house and you walk towards the station, the computer still glowing in the corner. You do not look back. You do not check the map. You do not need to. You know where you are going. You are going to a new city, a neutral city, a city you have never been to before. You are going to start over, to reinvent yourself, to find what you have been looking for. You are going to let go of the past and embrace the future. You are going to be free.