I guess I always sort of expected the ranks to thin out, like during a long deployment, but this quiet, the way the common room's become a ghost town after the bell... it's a specific kind of cold, you know, when your old comrades start finding new assignments, new fronts to fight on.
aging friendship loss

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Comparison spiralsFeeling Invisible With AgeFriendship fakenessLoneliness in crowdsMidlife Loneliness