The Promise

Chapter Fifteen

It hit her in the middle of the night. It was a deep feeling, like a gnawing pit in her stomach. It wasn't hunger. She had no desire for food. It was an overwhelming feeling of grief. It shook her right out of a restful sleep and brought every terrible emotion she had felt the day before back to the surface. Covering her mouth with her hand, she tried in vain to keep a sob from escaping as she looked over to Tom who was slumbering beside her. Carefully, she extricated herself from his arms, feeling the loss of his warmth, but not wanting to wake him. Getting up, she grabbed her robe and padded into the bathroom, closing the door so she could cry alone in peace.

Tom became restless in his sleep, feeling a sudden chill on his side. He turned and opened his eyes slightly to see that Isabella was no longer there. Sitting up, he wiped a hand over his face, looking around the darkroom.

"Isabella? Are you in here?" He asked the darkroom with no response.

An odd feeling of worry flooded his senses, propelling him to get up and put on his boxer briefs. He thought he heard a noise coming from the bathroom so he walked over and placed his ear to the door. Soft sobs could be heard from the other side. Opening the door, he walked in and turned the light on. Isabella looked up at him from the corner of the room by the toilet where she was curled up in a ball, her face red from the tears that seemed to fall endlessly from her eyes. The magic that he saw in them earlier was gone, replaced by sorrow and hurt.

"Darling? What are you doing in here?" He said, walking over and crouching down in front of her.

He lifted her face up to meet his gaze, pushing the hair back from her face and wiping away the tears that fell.

She sniffled hard and wiped at her face, running a hand through her hair as she sighed in frustration.

"I just... I don't know... I woke up out of nowhere... and I felt like I was dying inside. My heart, Thomas. It hurts so much," she said, choking out the last words as another sob bubbled up to the surface.

"Oh, Isabella," he said, his heartbreaking for her. "Come on."

He picked up her limp body from the floor, setting her down on the toilet seat.

She sat there looking defeated as he went over to the clawfoot tub that sat next to the shower and turned on the water. Making sure it was warm he went back over to her and helped her out of her robe before getting her settled in the water. He took off his shorts and got in behind her, pulling her to him as she rested against his chest.

"She's gone. She's really gone," Isabella said, and started crying again, feeling as if she would suffocate if she didn't let the tears fall. She turned to the side in his arms, the tears streaking down his chest as he stroked her hair, letting her get it all out. He held her and soothed her as she cried until she had no tears left and all she could do was sniffle.

"I'm so sorry, darling. I wish I could bring her back to you," he said quietly as she rested against his chest. "All I know is that people say when you die that you go to a better place and I like to think that is true because it makes it easier to live with losing someone knowing that they are at peace somewhere else. I know she loved you very much and never wanted to leave you, but it was her time to go and she knew that. Perhaps reading her letter will help you."

"I hope so," she said so softly that he almost didn't hear her. "I just miss her so much. It's so overwhelming."

"It just happened. You have to give it time. Grief doesn't work on a specific timeline. Just allow yourself to feel it and deal with it. It's the only way you can learn to live with it."

He pressed his lips to the crown of her head before tightening his hold on her. She sighed in his embrace, feeling his strength coursing through her. He had a way with words that was unparalleled and it never failed to lift her spirits. She just sat back as he picked up a loofah and washed her body, scrubbing away the remnants of their night together and the negativity of the day. It was so relaxing as they sat in the tub together that she felt her lids droop. Before she knew it, she had fallen asleep in his arms.
When he heard the sounds of her soft snoring, he smiled to himself as he positioned her to the side to get himself out and dried off before picking her up and carrying her back into the bedroom wrapped in a towel. He managed to get her dried off for the most part without waking her before tucking her in and coming around to the other side of the bed to get in, pulling her close to him. By that point, he reflexively yawned and fell right back to sleep.