Roses never fade

I came back for one reason only: my passport.

It was locked in a safe at the estate, hidden in my old, tiny room.

I thought the house would be empty at this hour.

I was wrong.

I slipped in through a side door, shaking the rain off my coat.

Laughter drifted down the hallway, light and carefree.

The sound came from the music room.

I should have turned around right then.

But my feet carried me forward, pulled by an invisible force.

I stopped dead in my tracks at the open double doors.

Dante sat at the grand piano, his posture straight and elegant.

He was playing Liebestraum (Love Dream).

It was a song he had composed while blind, born in the darkness that had once consumed him.

He used to play it for me at 3:00 AM, in the quiet hours when the pain in his eyes was unbearable.

He had told me the melody was the sound of my voice.

Now, he was playing it for her.

Sofia sat on the bench beside him, far too close.

She rested her head on his shoulder, her fingers dancing lightly over the keys, pretending to play along with him.

She looked up, her gaze landing on me standing in the doorway.

A glint of malice flashed in her eyes.

"Oh, look, Dante," she cooed. "The help is back."

Dante's hands faltered on the keys.

The music stopped abruptly.

He turned around.

His eyes met mine across the room.

"Elena," he said softly, a defensive edge to his voice. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm packing," I replied.

"Don't be rude, Dante," Sofia chided gently, placing a possessive hand on his chest. "Finish the piece. I love this song. You wrote it for me, right?"

Dante looked at me.

He knew.

He knew that I knew.

But he didn't correct her.

"Yeah," he said, his deep gaze never leaving my eyes, cold and unwavering. "I wrote it for you, Sofia."

Something deep inside me snapped.

The last, vital lifeline was severed.

Sofia smiled triumphantly.

She leaned in closer.

She kissed his lips.

It wasn't a light peck; it was a declaration of ownership.

Dante didn't push her away.

He didn't flinch.

He just closed his eyes and let her kiss him.

I stood there and watched them.

I watched the man I had pulled back from the brink of despair kiss the woman who had abandoned him.

I didn't scream.

I just turned and walked away.

The rain was coming down harder now, turning into a thunderstorm.

I didn't seek shelter.

I walked straight into the deluge.

The water mixed with the tears on my face, making them indistinguishable.

I was free.

I had nothing left to lose, because he had taken the last thing I truly owned.

My memories.