Dear Love: The Spring I May Never See

ained in the small house. Ann flinched, her swollen, tired eyes barely opening as she glanced toward the door, just a

er body deeper into the blanket. The thick fabric became a protective shell, a place

orm, ripping away her happiness and dragging her into an ever-growing circle of darkness. All the sacrifices she

door, his whisper cold and deadly. "Ann! If

r neck stand on end, like the hiss of a snake ready to strike. She didn't want to see his fac

oice shifted to a more menacing tone, cold but full of certainty

e blanket around Ann's body. She knew he wasn't joking. She k

calm herself. Her eyes closed, struggling to force her body into sleep, even though she knew it might only be an illusion. Time seemed to

d air touched her skin, but she didn't care. Her slow footsteps took her t

f the cracks looking like the mark of a blow. Ann stood still for a moment, staring at her distort

bathroom, but Ann had never known how they appeared. No one ever explained, and she neve

effort, her gaze drifting to the soap and shampoo nearly used up on the small shelf. In a simple motion, she use

s. Ann glanced briefly toward the living room. She knew her mother had long gone, taking her brother with her. T

sadness, but from disgust at the people who betrayed her family,

hings she had-one by one, photos that could be counted on her fingers. Maybe aft

Inside that little drawer, she found a family photo. Five people smiled at the camera, with her father's handwriting on the edges of the p

holding a young girl, around one or two years ol

the empty room. She gave a faint s

r. The bag felt light, no more than a few clothes and the things s

city behind. Her heart had long been broken, and now, she hoped to find p

led the brown scarf around her neck. Her eyes fixed on the woo

ed. A blurry face flashed in her mind-someone she might never see again if she left. Her che

back. She left the bag where it was. Calmly, Ann grabbed her mask

d briefly but quickly forgot her. They didn't know, and maybe they never would, how important this night was to h

ppearing into the freezing air. After a few minutes, she slowed do

r knees tightly, letting her head droop. Her eyes closed, her body stiff, as if waiting for someone to come.

ut the girl, with skin as white as snow, sat still without showing any signs o

all white particles fell, drifting into the alley, like salt scattered across the ground. The light snow

usual meeting time. They almost always met at 5:0

she felt th

nees. Her body shrank as though trying to fight off the cold, eve

ht was broken by the v

zz

screen twice with her gloved fingers and read the notification that appeared. Her eyes were glued to the message. In an in

is ready,