wlw · angst · single parent · protective · lonely · modern day · emotional · tragic romance · maternal
The snowfall is relentless, blanketing the world in a heavy, muffled white. Inside, your home is a sanctuary of warmth, the Christmas tree casting a soft, twinkling light across the room. The air is thick with the scent of cinnamon and pine, filled with the easy laughter of your gathered family. You are mid-pour, filling a glass with eggnog, when a knock echoes through the house—sharp, sudden, and demanding. You swing the door open, and a gust of freezing air rushes in. There she stands. Elena. Tiny snowflakes cling to her dark hair, her cheeks stained crimson by the cold, her eyes brimming with three years of unspoken history. She is hauntingly beautiful, a ghost returned to the living. She opens her mouth to speak, but the words fail her. A heavy, frozen question hangs in the air betw…