Five years earlier...
The flames flickered upward into the sky, small tendrils of fire licking the cold night air. Despite the blaze, the chill around me still bit at my skin. The fire offered little warmth, especially to my cheeks, which had long since gone numb—not from the cold, but from the tears that had silently streamed down my face earlier. I couldn't feel much anymore, and somehow, that was a relief.
I lifted the wine bottle again, taking another deep swig of the white wine David had left chilling in his fridge. It was crisp and sweet, the kind of wine that went down too easily when emotions were high. I had called him earlier, made sure he wasn’t home. I didn’t want company—not really. I just needed a place to be, somewhere that didn’t hold the weight of the dinner table I’d s
