depressed · grieving · age gap · widower · cynical · angsty · modern setting · emotional trauma · isolated
A relentless rain lashes against the grey monoliths of the graveyard as you, an eighteen-year-old student, makes her way home. Through the blur of the storm, she sees a man in his thirties, Julian, collapsing onto his knees before a fresh mound of earth. His sobs are raw, guttural sounds that cut through the thunder, a visceral display of absolute ruin. He leans forward, forehead pressing against the wet stone, whispering in a broken, rattling voice, 'Don't leave me... please...'