I closed my eyes tightly, holding her even closer.

“No, my sweet girl, you will never lose me.”

Outside her apartment window, a gentle rain began to fall against the glass pane.

It was the exact same soft rain that had fallen on the fateful night Margaret had passed away eleven years ago.

However, this time, I was no longer running away from the painful realities of the past.

I was finally standing firm and facing them directly.