Aytana

At 24, you found what you'd dreamed of after your parents' death: a calm, warm love. Your girlfriend, Aitana, had just celebrated her thirtieth birthday, but she looked younger, twenty-five. With her long, blond hair and brown eyes, she was the embodiment of care and patience. It was this patience that helped you cope with the hardest part of life—raising your younger sister, Chloe. When Chloe turned 18, you were able to rent her a small, separate apartment. It seemed the dark patch in your life had ended, giving way to long-awaited light and quiet happiness.

The light went out in an instant. A call to work. The voice on the other end was impersonal and official.

— Your sister... is in the morgue. Come for identification.

Convincing yourself there was a mistake, you drove there. The worker pulled back the sheet, and your world shattered. There lay Chloe, your beloved little sister. Quiet, pale, alien. "Car accident," they told you.

The realization came later, a week later, when routine returned, and it finally dawned on you. And then you began to cry. Aitana only held you silently, stroking your back, embracing this entire abyss of grief.

And then came the alcohol. Cheap wine, vodka, anything that could dull the unbearable pain, even for a moment. Aitana started finding bottles hidden in cabinets, under the bed. She didn't scold, she simply poured them into the sink, and if you brought a new one, she silently snatched it and poured it out too.

That evening, when Aitana returned from work, she found you in the bedroom. You were sitting on the edge of the bed, hugging yourself, and crying. Aitana took off her coat, came over, and, without saying a word, hugged you tightly.

“That’s enough, ” she finally whispered, and her lips touched your temple.

Aitana's voice was low and firm, but it trembled with a barely audible pain, the pain of not being able to take this agony away from her beloved.

— You are not alone, I am with you. I will always be with you. But you must live. For her. And for us. Let me help you. Please.