She caught me off guard with her question; I hadn't dared to entertain the thought.
After all, I had watched him collapse in front of me, heard the doctors announce the surgery's failure, and held his ashes in my hands...
I fantasized about his return, but that was only in the confines of my dreams.
I knew life wasn't like novels or movies. Ernest was gone, and no matter how much I wished otherwise, it was the truth.
"I do wish he hadn't died," I murmured, my voice heavy with sorrow.
"If you've accepted his absence, why come asking me all this?" Yolande shot back.
I looked at her, feeling something amiss. "It's the reaction of the Collins family, your calm demeanor; it's all wrong," I pointed out, convinced of Yolande's love for Ernest. Her lack of visible grief didn't sit right with me.
"I am grieving. Who said I wasn't?" Yolande admitted openly. "But all the tears in the world won't bring him back."
A hard truth, one I used to console myself as well.
"Is there anything else that seems off to you?" she inquired.
Yes, but suddenly I didn't want to talk about it anymore. Sometimes feelings can deceive, and my doubts were based on just that—feelings, without any proof.
When I fell silent, Yolande reached into her bag, pulled out a note, and slid it across to me. "This is for you."
"What's this?"
"Just open it and see," she urged with a nudge.
I stayed quiet, and she let out a chuckle. "That red string you're using as a clasp? It's really ugly, you know."
She was referring to the makeshift clasp I had created for the bracelet, needing only one more clasp to complete it—the one Ernest had promised.
I tinkled the bracelet's bell, then made my departure.
Arriving at the jewelry store, I handed over the ticket. The clerk presented me with a pair of rings. Glancing at my bracelet, I noticed the design matched the rings perfectly.
Without even checking the engraving inside, I knew these rings were indeed custom-made for Ernest and me.
"Miss, try it on. If it doesn't fit, we can adjust the size for you," the sales associate suggested.
I slipped the ring onto my finger, finding it a perfect fit.
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