Without You

Her forehead touched the stone as she took a shaky breath. The flowers, clutched in her fists, begged for air as her knuckles turned white.

She knelt on the grave, her head against the tombstone. Once she’d cried herself quiet, she opened her eyes. “It should have been me”, she whispered.

Her tears were as light as raindrops and as heavy as hail as she looked at the tombstone, she knew this was the first but definitely not the last time that she would feel this pain

She felt that everyone was leaving, even the ghost of whoever looked at the tombstone. She felt lost

and completely alone. But, where did everyone go? She looked around & saw a pub across the street. Laughter & music poured from the open windows. "Whiskey sours on the house!" cried a friendly voice. Well, she thought, anywhere's better than here. After a deep breath, she stood &

walked to the bar clutching her purse. She jostled her way in to claim her free drink. She began to feel euphoric, clinking her glass with strangers. Soon she totally escaped her numb existence, feeling again like a part of humanity. “Happy new year,” she whispered through tears.