The City in the Trees

She was unfortunate. One mistake in the bloom of youth, and she regretted it for the rest of her life. Yet she was fortunate, too. Someone was willing to protect her in silence for ten years, lifting her out of an endless abyss. Whenever winter nights fell and they huddled together for warmth, she would always ask him, “Why me?” Why me, in this filthy, heartless, cruel world, time and time again? He stroked her head. “You're still my treasure, my brightest jewel.” Because neither of us ever abandoned the other, we deserve a better kind of love. Let us love boldly and wholeheartedly.