Elena stared out of the window, the soft glow of the evening sun casting long shadows across the room.

The sky was painted in hues of orange and pink, a stark contrast to the turbulent emotions swirling inside her. It was supposed to be a special evening—an anniversary dinner she had planned for weeks. But the empty chair across the table seemed to mock her, a reminder of the promise broken.

Tom’s voice, always so confident and warm, had been nothing more than a distant echo now. His words, “I’m running late, something came up,” had been repeated too many times in the past month.

But tonight, as she looked at the untouched plates and the unopened bottle of wine, she knew something was different.

The soft chime of her phone jolted her from her thoughts. A message. Her heart raced as she opened it, hoping for a last-minute explanation. But instead, the screen displayed a photo of Tom—his arm draped around a woman she didn’t recognize, both of them laughing in a lavish restaurant.

A sense of betrayal crashed over her like a tidal wave. The woman in the photo was everything Elena wasn’t: poised, polished, and draped in designer labels. It was clear now—Tom hadn’t just left her for anyone; he had left her for someone who represented a world she could never enter. Her vision blurred as tears welled up.

Elena sank into the chair, feeling the weight of the unspoken words and broken promises.

The laughter and clinking of glasses from the photo seemed to echo through the room, a cruel reminder of what was lost. Her mind raced through memories of their relationship—the shared dreams, the whispered secrets. All now tainted by this single, devastating image.

Determined not to be broken by this betrayal, Elena took a deep breath and grabbed her phone. With a trembling hand, she began typing a message to Tom, her resolve hardening with each word. If this was the end, she would face it with dignity.

Elena calls a cab to get home, with an empty soul.

Elena stared at the message she had typed, her heart pounding in her chest. It was a simple, cold goodbye—she wasn’t even sure if she intended to send it. Her world felt like it was unraveling, and with every breath, the weight of her despair pressed down harder. The vision of Tom with the other woman haunted her, a relentless reminder of her inadequacy and loss.

She stood up shakily and walked to the bathroom, her mind a whirl of confusion and anguish. The mirror reflected a pale, tear-streaked face that barely resembled the confident woman she once knew. As she stared at herself, a dark thought began to form, one she tried desperately to push away.

She opened the medicine cabinet, her hands trembling as she reached for a bottle of painkillers. The thought of ending the pain—of escaping the crushing sense of betrayal and abandonment—seemed both terrifying and oddly comforting.

Her eyes darted around the room, searching for something to anchor her, something that might pull her back from the edge.

The bottle felt heavy in her hands. She fumbled with the cap, her thoughts racing.

What would it be like to just slip away from this unbearable reality? Could it really be the solution to her suffocating pain?

She sank to the floor, the bottle slipping from her fingers and rolling away.

Tears streamed down her face as she clutched her knees to her chest, the image of Tom laughing with the other woman flashing before her eyes.

The room felt suffocating, the walls closing in on her as the weight of her despair grew heavier.

In her darkest moment, a small voice within her whispered for help, a plea she wasn’t sure she wanted to hear.

She reached for her phone again, hesitating before dialing the number of her closest friend, Sarah. It was a desperate move, a cry for connection in a time when isolation felt unbearable.

The phone rang and rang, each tone stretching out in the silence of her apartment. As the call finally went to voicemail, Elena’s sobs grew louder, a raw, guttural sound that seemed to echo through the empty space. She wanted to believe there was hope, a sliver of light in the darkness.

But for now, the weight of her sorrow felt overwhelming, a black abyss she wasn’t sure she could escape.

Elena stood in the dimly lit room, her mind swirling with the overwhelming pain of Tom's betrayal.

The rope dangled from the ceiling, a silent testament to her despair. She could still hear Tom's cruel words echoing in her mind, his indifferent face as he walked away, leaving her shattered and alone.

The room was silent except for the ticking of the clock, counting down the seconds to what she believed would be the end of her suffering.

Elena's heart pounded in her chest as she approached the rope, her fingers trembling as she reached for it. Tears streamed down her face, each one a silent cry for the love that had been taken from her.

Just as she began to lift the rope, her phone rang, the sudden noise breaking through the fog of despair. She hesitated, her breath catching in her throat. The phone continued to ring, persistent and insistent. Something inside her compelled her to answer it, a tiny spark of hope or perhaps just curiosity.

With trembling hands, she picked up the phone and saw Sarah's name on the screen. For a moment, she simply stared at it, the tears blurring her vision. Then, almost without thinking, she answered.

"Elena? Are you there?" Sarah's voice was filled with concern and urgency.

Elena's voice cracked as she replied, "Sarah... I can't do this anymore."

"Don't say that," Sarah responded, her tone gentle but firm. "I know it hurts, I know you feel like the world is falling apart, but I'm here for you. We can get through this together. Please, don't do anything rash."

Elena broke down, her sobs filling the empty room. Sarah's voice was like a lifeline, pulling her back from the edge. The rope fell from her hands, and she collapsed to the floor, clutching the phone as if it were the only thing keeping her tethered to life.

"I'm coming over right now," Sarah said, her voice steady. "Just hold on. You're not alone, Elena. I promise you, we'll get through this."

The call got cut as Elena sat on her bed trying to calm down and abandoning the idea to commit suicide. But suddenly she got another text as he opened it, thinking it was Sarah.

Her eyes widen as she drops the phone at the sight of another picture of Tom and the other woman in bed. The room went silent with only the sound of a thunderstorm outside.

As the storm outside raged, the wind howling like a tortured spirit, Elena’s heart felt like it was being ripped apart. The pain in her chest was overwhelming, a dull ache that only intensified with every flash of lightning that illuminated her darkened room. She stared at the picture Tom had sent, her hands trembling, her vision blurring with tears.

She could barely process what had happened. How could he do this to her? The man she loved, the one she thought would always be there, had chosen someone else. And not just anyone—a richer, more glamorous woman who seemed to have everything Elena didn’t. The feeling of inadequacy gnawed at her, the words “never enough” echoing in her mind like a cruel taunt.

Elena’s phone buzzed again. For a moment, she hoped it was Sarah, maybe finally free from the traffic, with comforting words that could anchor her in this storm of despair. But it wasn’t Sarah.

It was another message from Tom, as if to hammer the final nail into her already shattered heart.“Don’t bother replying,” the message read. “We’re done.”

Elena’s breath hitched, and she dropped her phone, the device clattering to the floor. It felt like the world had just collapsed around her.

All the memories she had cherished—their first date, the way he used to make her laugh, the nights they spent talking about the future—now seemed like a cruel joke.

How had it all meant nothing to him? She looked out the window, watching as the rain lashed against the glass, the thunder rumbling in the distance.

The storm outside mirrored the chaos inside her mind, wild and untamed. She felt the weight of her grief, her despair, and her loneliness pressing down on her, crushing her spirit.

Elena could hear Sarah’s voice echoing in her mind, but it was drowned out by the deafening roar of her own pain. The tears kept flowing, her sobs wracking her body until she felt completely hollow, like she had been drained of all her strength.

With trembling hands, she placed her phone down on the nightstand and walked over to the corner of her room, where she had found an old, rickety stool. She didn’t want to feel this way anymore.

The emptiness, the heartbreak, the betrayal—they were all too much. She just wanted the pain to stop. She had thought about it earlier, in the moments after she saw Tom’s cruel message, but now, standing in the middle of her room with the storm raging outside, the idea became terrifyingly real.

She had tied the rope to the ceiling beam, her fingers numb and clumsy as she worked, not really believing what she was doing. But the numbness had taken over, and it was the only thing that dulled the agony that had ripped her apart.

Elena climbed onto the stool, her legs shaking so badly she nearly fell. She steadied herself, closing her eyes to block out the reality of what she was about to do. Her heart pounded in her chest, a wild, desperate rhythm, as if it knew that these might be its final beats.

As she stood there, the rope swaying gently in the breeze that slipped through the cracked window, the storm outside seemed to grow even louder.

Thunder rumbled overhead, the sound vibrating through the walls, as if the universe itself was protesting against what she was about to do. But Elena felt so far removed from the world, so disconnected.

She was no longer the girl who had dreams, who had laughed with friends, who had loved someone with all her heart. She was just a broken shell, and the thought of living even one more day in this state seemed impossible.

As she finally steps away from the stool as her dear lifeless body hangs from the ceiling.

The door to Elena’s apartment was unlocked, creaking open as Sarah pushed it with trembling hands.

The storm outside had followed her in, rain-soaked clothes clinging to her skin, and her heart pounded in her chest as she entered the dimly lit room.“Elena?” Sarah’s voice trembled, a mix of fear and desperation as she called out, but there was no response—only the distant rumble of thunder and the soft patter of rain against the windows.

She moved further into the apartment, her footsteps echoing ominously in the silence.The living room was eerily still, as if time had frozen the moment Elena had made her final decision.

The overturned stool on the floor sent a chill down Sarah’s spine, her eyes widening as she followed the rope that hung from the ceiling.

“No…” The word escaped her lips in a strangled whisper as she rushed forward, her heart shattering as she saw Elena’s lifeless body swaying gently. The sight was too much to bear, and Sarah fell to her knees, sobbing uncontrollably.

“Why, Elena?” she cried out, her voice cracking with anguish. She reached out, but her hands trembled too much to even touch the rope. Her mind raced, searching for something, anything, she could have done differently.

If only she had gotten there sooner. If only she had been faster, more persistent, more insistent. But it was too late.

Sarah’s tears flowed freely as she cradled her head in her hands, her entire body shaking with the force of her grief. The world around her felt surreal, as if she were trapped in a nightmare she couldn’t wake up from.

Her best friend, the person she had always promised to protect, was gone. She could feel the warmth draining from Elena’s small apartment, the room growing colder as the storm outside seemed to mirror the sorrow inside.

The air was thick with the heaviness of loss, pressing down on Sarah’s chest, making it hard to breathe.

“I’m so sorry,” Sarah whispered through her tears, her voice barely audible over the sound of the rain. “I’m so, so sorry…”

The storm outside raged on, but inside the apartment, everything was still. The only sound was Sarah’s broken sobs, filling the emptiness left in the wake of Elena’s death.

She had lost her best friend, and no amount of time, no words of comfort, would ever be able to fill the void that now consumed her.At that moment, Sarah felt utterly alone, the weight of her guilt and sorrow too heavy to bear.

She had been there, but it wasn’t enough. She hadn’t been able to save her, and that failure would haunt her for the rest of her life.

"If only...If only I had gotten here sooner" Sarah cried out as she held Elena's lifeless body close to her.

As Sarah wept over Elena’s lifeless body, the atmosphere in the apartment grew heavy with grief.

Amid the quiet sobs and the distant sounds of the storm, an ethereal light began to manifest around Elena’s still form. Slowly, her soul separated from her body, emerging as a luminous, spectral figure.

Elena’s spirit floated above the room, the stark reality of her final moments settling in. She watched as Sarah’s shoulders shook with sobs, her face wet with tears.

The sight of Sarah’s overwhelming grief pierced Elena’s soul, her own sense of remorse and sadness intensifying with every moment. The spectral Elena hovered near her friend, her form flickering with an otherworldly light as she reached out, trying to touch Sarah.

The attempt was futile, and Elena’s heart, if it could still be called that, broke as she realized the depth of the hurt she had caused.With tears streaming down her ghostly face, Elena’s spirit turned upward, her gaze searching the heavens with a desperate plea. She fell to her knees in the empty, timeless space between life and death, her voice trembling and filled with raw anguish.“Please, God… please,” Elena’s voice wavered, a fragile whisper carried by the wind. “I didn’t mean for this to happen. I was so lost, so broken… I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry. I see the pain I’ve caused Sarah… I see how much she’s suffering because of me. I never wanted this. I never wanted to hurt her or anyone else.

Her ghostly figure trembled with each sob, the light around her growing brighter as her emotions surged. “Give me another chance… please… let me go back, before everything went wrong. Before Tom… before all of this. I want to make things right. I want to live… to fix my mistakes and be there for Sarah. I want to help her… I want to help everyone who’s hurting.”

Elena’s cries for redemption echoed through the stillness, her spirit wracked with helplessness.

She extended her arms towards the sky, her face upturned as if pleading directly to a higher power. Her sobs were a mixture of regret and deep, unfulfilled longing.

As the surrounding light intensified, there was a palpable sense of a presence, a soothing calm that began to envelop Elena.

The ethereal warmth offered a fleeting sense of comfort, as if the universe was listening, absorbing her heartfelt plea.

With each tear that fell from her spectral eyes, Elena’s hope grew stronger.

She clung to the possibility of a second chance, her soul’s final cry resonating with the yearning to return, to fix the past, and to mend the broken pieces of her life and Sarah’s.