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You can meet many people throughout the year. Some you remember fondly and still greet and see to this day. Others… Well, animosity can grow, even when one doesn’t mean it. Perhaps it is the strong scent of pine and cinnamon in the air as you walk down a snowy path, or the twinkling lights above you that glitter and dance in the dim light of sunset, somehow a sense of regret fills your heart. Whether it is the desire to forgive, or the desire to be forgiven, you feel the desire to reach out to someone you haven’t spoken to in a long time. A long overdue talk is needed. But it is up to you to respond to that burden on your heart.
Samir thought of Aubrey often.
The Dark Mirror Senshi of Gambling, who had won him over so much so that he had lost all sense of reason. He had been smitten with her, he had loved her little sisters. His dogs had loved them, too. His family and hers.
One day things were perfect, and the next, she was gone.
He knew she'd had her troubles, that she carried a great weight on her shoulders. She was taking care of her sisters alone. It was a task she was too young to have been burdened with alone, but she had loved them and she had done her best for them.
Samir didn't blame her for leaving without a word, but it didn't take the hurt out of his heart.
His eyes lingered on the setting sun and he felt as though he'd been thrust back in time. He could practically feel her at his side, could hear her laugh, her hand in his. It had been about this time of year and the smell of pine and cinnamon brought him back into hat moment so strongly that he had to pause and glance around to see if he hadn't just imagined everything since then. To see if she was there, leaning against the wall, watching him with one of her playful smiles.
He recognized none of the faces. A soft sigh fell from his lips and he shook his head, continuing on his path. His pace was slow but he wasn't in any sort of rush.
There was a pang of longing in his heart; he wished he could have said goodbye, at least. The world had changed too much since they last saw each other but there was a hole in his heart that she had left and he didn't know if it would ever completely heal. He'd moved on, but he'd have been lying if he said he didn't still love her. Age had worn away the passion, though he still thought of her often.
In all this time, she could have called. Emailed. Texted. Sent a letter.
If she had gone into hiding from someone who would have hurt her or or sisters, he would have understood. But to hide from the world, from him?
He couldn't believe that she was dead; he would have heard something. He checked obituaries. Here, everywhere. When he had the stomach to expect the worst. If she had purified, she'd have had good reason. But he liked to think she'd have said goodbye if she'd had the chance.
But then, she hadn't, and she was still gone. He had hope in his heart that she'd just had to leave everything behind to have a better life. He knew she'd have done anything for the girls.
Still, he missed her.
Life moved on, but a little part of her lived on in his heart.
He'd have written to her if he could. Maybe tonight, an email, to the account she used to have. Her number had been disconnected, but maybe she still checked her email.
He liked to think she did.
