Never take your eyes off me // Bridgerton Story

I

Some miss close, in my case, this is suffering.

There are more than a billion stars in the night sky, each one brighter than the other. There are more than a billion people on earth, each with their own stars. It always gets easier at night, all the hardships and sorrows of the day fade away. A person falls asleep to take a break from them and continue the cycle of problems, joy, grief, and self-search in this amazing starry world the next day. At dusk, even people's voices change. Unfortunately, there were no stars visible that night, clouds filled the sky.

A heavy downpour was beating relentlessly on the cobbles, each raindrop was striking the stones with an intensity that echoed the turmoil in the heavens. The wind, piercing and icy, was sweeping through the graveyard like an invisible specter, lifting the leaves off the ground and breaking the beautiful flowers that dared to bloom under a such sad land. The once vibrant petals were torn away, scattering in the wind like lost loved ones. Yet amidst this wrath of nature, there existed something that its fury could not break - a heart that has already been shattered. A heart, already familiar with the depths of despair, stood resilient amidst the storm, its fragments holding steadfast. For what power does a storm have over a vessel already broken? The heart, in its brokenness, in its profound familiarity with pain, remained unscathed by the violence of the storm. It had already faced the most devastating tempest - the storm of loss - and had emerged, battered but unbroken.

Ada, drenched, sat by two graves. Raindrops or tears streamed down her face. With a trembling hand, she touched a marble slab, hoping to feel the living, to feel what had long been dead. She sat there, eyes closed, recalling her parents' voices, their gentle hands, their hugs, their faces. She remembered and couldn't hold onto them; they were swept away by the cold wind, bringing only pain, grief, and suffering. Each memory made her cry more, and then she let out a helpless scream or a desperate howl - it was unclear, the downpour drowned all other sounds. At some point, she stopped, her voice turned into a low moan, and then it fell silent altogether. Even the rain stopped, but the clouds still hung over the graveyard, as did her pain that didn't go anywhere, just took a break.

"Mom," Ada whispered in a hoarse and broken voice, stroking the cold stone. Taking a deep breath, she continued: "I have arrived. We're home. Maybe forever now. Lady Danbury invited us here after Aunt Berkeley passed away. She is, as usual, straightforward, insightful, sharp-tongued, kind, and wise. She also offered to help us this season, to which we gladly agreed. Agatha is very happy to be here, says she wants to be like you, charm everyone and find her true love. Upon arrival, there was an audience with Her Majesty, she is still sweet and not indifferent to our family, her and Lady Danbury's hopes of seeing me in the new season can fail, perhaps. I do want to participate in this too. I really do. I admit to you that I am tired and want to find someone who could love me, because it seems to me that my love has been spent and I don't have it in my heart anymore. Anyway, I will support Agatha and Amelia," Ada exhaled heavily, and then looked at her mother's beloved, already a little broken roses that are planted around the grave fence.

"Yes, I'm so tired, and the season hasn't started yet, but I don't want to talk about it now. I know that we will solve everything... We all miss you and Dad so much," Ada sighed heavily again and looked at the neighboring father's grave. "Alexander and Adriana did not leave your portrait in the living room. It's great, of course, but It brings so much pain to me. Amelia is probably the most cheerful of the five of us. I don't know how she smiles so sincerely when people talk about you, as if you are at home, in the next room. I didn't even last there for a few hours - firstly, the Queen, then the tenants," she paused for a few minutes, - "and then I realized that I didn't want to go back to where everything is about you, but you are not there," she paused again, catching her breath.