6 | 𝒂𝒃𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒗𝒂𝒍𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆 𝒑𝒊𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒆

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𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐆: 𝐒𝐭𝐢𝐠𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠

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𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐆: 𝐒𝐭𝐢𝐠𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠

...💫...

𝑷𝑹𝑬𝑺𝑬𝑵𝑻, 𝑆𝑀𝐴𝐿𝐿𝑉𝐼𝐿𝐿𝐸

𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟎𝟎𝟑

✨ | 𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐀 | ✨

𝐑𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐬 𝐩𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭 𝐀𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐚'𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐰, 𝐦𝐢𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐡𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐦 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐡𝐚𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭.

Huddled in her window seat, she stared at the storm, the world outside blurring with unshed tears. A tense shuffle of footsteps outside her door shattered the quiet, followed by a bang that made her jump.

The door flew open, and Ariella's gaze snapped to an older, disheveled boy. His warm brown skin paled in the gloomy afternoon from the storm. She knew from pictures that it was Braxton, Valerie's older brother. His face was etched with worry, his eyes red-rimmed and desperate. He slammed the door behind him, leaving them in anxious silence.

"Ariella," his voice rasped, thick with barely contained emotion. "What happened to my sister?"

Ariella flinched, the memory of her horrifying nightmare flooding back. It felt like a lifetime ago, two weeks filled with a gnawing emptiness and suffocating worry.

"I don't know," she stammered, tears welling up. "The last time I saw her was..."

Braxton rubbed his forehead, his breath coming out in a shaky sigh. "It's been two weeks, Ariella," he said, his voice quieter now, laced with weary despair. "Everyone keeps telling me to be patient, that the police are doing everything they can...but I just want my little sister back."

Tears spilled down Ariella's cheeks, a choked sob escaping her lips. "It's all my fault," she whispered, the words heavy with self-loathing.

Braxton's eyes softened. "No, Ariella," he said, his voice firm but gentle. "It's not."

"But maybe if I fought harder..." she trailed off, guilt a physical weight pressing down on her. "Maybe if I..."

He pulled her into a crushing hug, and Ariella dissolved into tears, the dam finally breaking. Braxton held her tight, whispering words of comfort against her hair.

"Stop blaming yourself," he murmured. "Valerie wouldn't want that. We have to hold onto hope that we'll find her one day."

Ariella pulled back, wiping at her tears. Braxton's words pierced the fog of self-pity, sparking a flicker of determination within her. She wouldn't let Valerie's disappearance crush her. She had to be strong, for Valerie, for herself.

𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐋 | 𝐂𝐋𝐀𝐑𝐊 𝐊𝐄𝐍𝐓 |  (𝟏)Where stories live. Discover now