within the meadow √ h.s.

e l e v e n

warning: mention of sensitive topics such as suicide.

spring was as beautiful and blossoming as could be. colors were showcased in the meadow for miles, and the flowers were welcoming the secrets delilah was allowing to slip out.

they had been talking about the beautiful landscape, and how the other found it. "my mom used to bring me here."

delilah felt a wave of nostalgia blow through the air as the wind carried it through. "she-she brought me here almost everyday, and this meadow is a big part of my earliest childhood memories."

harry listened intently as delilah's usually smooth and sure voice quivered slightly.

"she always made me feel so safe, and loved, but i didn't understand that the meadow somehow brought her comfort. it was just us, and i always felt so complete i never realized she might not feel the same. granted, i was only five, but i just wish i could have helped her like the meadow did temporarily." her eyes shed a few tears while they stared at the clear blue sky.

"i'm sure she loved you so much, delilah. you probably helped her a lot more than you think." harry's voice was soothing and felt soft as they flowed through the air and into delilah's ears.

"only medication could help her. she was diagnosed with clinical depression, schizophrenia, and psychosis. it progressed throughout the years, so she signed over her parental rights to my aunt, who i call my mom. she went to a hospital but passed away when i was sixteen." the past was something delilah buried, and to dig it up took a lot out of her. she left out many details and early childhood memories that haunt her. like when she hears an ambulance siren because it reminds her of the multiple times she had to phone the police because her mother was bleeding on the kitchen floor after trying to leave behind her life of chaos.

harry realized the resemblance between delilah and her adoptive mother made sense because they were in fact related. harry also realized that he had pulled delilah into his side with her head on his shoulder.

secrets were captured by the wind, and liberation floated above the two blossoming souls. the weight of painful memories was lifted off of delilah's shoulders and replaced by harry's heavy, yet comforting arm. words were caught in his throat, and the only thing he could find himself able to do was kiss the top of her head.

and to delilah, it temporarily soothed her because that's all she really needed.