The girl looked up, tears streaming down her rosy cheeks. Nobody would hear that in the deep, dark wood, but her heart's sorrow could just not stay silent. She screamed, having lost something—or rather someone—that had been her only hope of happiness. She clutched her necklace, and her damp fingers touched the cool gold pendant, a heart intertwined with delicate vines. It was her gift from the one she lost, a promise whispered beneath starlit skies, vowing they would always find each other, no matter the distance. Thoughts flooded her mind like rushing water. Why us? Why can’t I have a happy life? The questions echoed in the silence, amplifying her pain. She glanced around, searching the shadows for a sign of comfort, but the people had vanished, leaving only the eerie stillness of the forest. The memory of that night replayed in her mind—snippets of the bus's radio crackling with news, the moment when her heart had shattered at the sound of the sirens, realising her closest person was no longer safe. In that fractured moment, her world shifted. The woods, once a sanctuary of peace, now felt like a tomb, echoing her despair. She pulled her knees to her chest, feeling small and insignificant against the weight of her grief. The cool breeze brushed against her skin, but all she could feel was the emptiness—a void where warmth and laughter had once flourished. Suddenly, a flicker of movement caught her eye. A small deer stepped cautiously from behind a thicket. It paused, staring at her with wide, innocent eyes. Despite the bond she felt, she also recognised the pain reflected in its gaze, a creature lost in an unforgiving world. Slowly, she extended a hand, palm open, but the deer kept its distance, mirroring her hesitance to reach out to others. “I want to be brave,” she whispered, her voice breaking as she recalled the laughter they had shared, the dreams they had woven together. The thought felt like a knife twisting in her chest. Each joyful memory was now a reminder of what could never be; her heart ached with the weight of silence left in their absence. Fingers trembling, she brushed a tear away, but it fell onto the pendant, mixing with her sorrow. “You were my light,” she murmured, clutching the necklace like a lifeline. The forest felt even lonelier now, shadows creeping in as if to swallow her whole. She longed to turn back time, to take one more step beside that familiar figure who had known her heart, who had made her feel cherished even in darkness. As dawn began to break, a soft light filtered through the trees, illuminating the forest in hues of gold and green. But it offered little comfort in that moment. The girl felt the weight of her loss pressing down on her, heavier than the morning mist. “Why did you have to leave?” The question lingered in the air, a haunting echo of her despair. The deer blinked, yet she saw none of the hope she needed reflected in its eyes. It turned and disappeared into the thicket, leaving her alone with her aching heart. A deep loneliness settled over her as if the world around her was moving on while she remained stuck in a moment of unbearable sorrow. With her necklace clutched tightly in her hand, she stood there, the world fading away, lost in memories that cut like glass. The forest would always hold her grief, a silence that would never be filled. This was her reality now: love turned to loss, laughter silenced by absence. The journey ahead felt impossibly heavy, but she had to take the first step. Even if it hurt, even if she stumbled through the darkness, she would carry her love with her, a bittersweet reminder of what it meant to truly feel. With every aching breath, she would walk forward, lost yet determined to keep the memory alive, one step at a time.
i wrote this myself, i was a bit inspired by ww2 but then it trailed off i guess into the unknown..
