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ADELINE
I sat curled up on the couch, my arms wrapped around my legs as I buried my face in my knees. The dim glow of the lamp beside me cast long shadows across the room, but I barely noticed.
My thoughts were a tangled mess, circling the same painful truth over and over again. The image of Vladimir getting tortured made me want to end my life in guilt for not being there for him but …… the pain i also felt for was …… myself and ……
Luciano.
For so many years, I had tried. I had fought for his love, endured his coldness, his silence, his indifference.
I had stood by his side, hoping—praying—that one day, he would see me, truly see me. That he would love me the way I had loved him.
But after everything I had learned… after the truth had come crashing down around me like an
