Treasure [h.s]

| 55 - Forever |

6 Months Later
No Perspective

Grief works in funny ways.

For some people, the deep sadness that comes with unimaginable loss provides new meaning to life.

New cures, new treatments, and new organizations become funded by grief in honor of lost loved ones. Great things happen when grief is in the right hands.

Brinna Styles spent much of her time staying away from the kind of grief her parents went through. While she had been successful for most of her life, there was one thing she was always right about.

Addiction runs in her blood.

It took only three weeks after Harry's passing for Brinna to get hooked on pills.

It took four more for her to get beaten so badly by two Russian tyrants before her friends held an intervention and, much to her dismay, forced the young widow to attend a rehabilitation center.

She left a short path of death and destruction behind her in an attempt to feel something, anything, close to the feeling she used to get when she was with Harry.

She never found it, but she has learned to cope with that loss. It took months before she could comfortably live in the home she once shared with another person.

It took months for her to come to terms with the idea of being alone. Even in a room full of people, she has to remind herself that the piece of her that's missing is only temporary and that she's never truly alone.

She doesn't know how she made it through half of a year without him, but dwelling on it does no good for her healing soul. She missed his warmth the most. The safe, effortless comfort he provided by just being next to her.

Half of her heart is out there somewhere and one day, she'll feel whole again.

The penthouse is dark and quiet, much like it always is. All of the shades have been drawn up to allow the beauty of the bustling city to take over her wandering mind when she's in need of another distraction.

She sighs deeply, her glasses sitting low on her nose. Her knees are drawn to her chest as she stares out of the large window.

The dark night sky is littered with bright stars and the moon is the only light source apart from her freshly finished work on the laptop in front of her.

She's been writing more lately. He would have been so proud of what she published. Although her first book was a success, everything that came after felt too raw to put into the world for others to bear witness to.

A small ball of black fur jumps up to the table, purring and rubbing on the side of her face. She turns her head slowly, smiling only a fraction at the little creature. "Hey, kitty, kitty," she mumbles, taking off her glasses and setting them to the side.

The young cat continues to paw at her hands, wanting her affection. "What do you need?" She pets his head. His green eyes give her love squeezes as he leans further into her touch.

The cat indulges in her scratches for a short time before jumping off the table and meowing. She watches the animal as he walks confidently to the front door and begins meowing loudly.

She follows the strange cat's need to see what may be on the other side of her front door.

The door creeks open slowly, enough so that the cat pushes it open with his paw before she can even register the image on her doorstep.

"Did you know these were here, Sunny?" she asks as her eyes blur over, muffling the vibrant yellow hues radiating off of the flowers.

He purrs and walks between her legs, stepping with her as they exit the door to the vase of yellow sunflowers. "You were named after these, you know." She eyes the peculiar vase and the cat walking around it.