Moonlit Promises: A Tale of Shadows and Redemption

t, holding it tight as if it would pin her to the present, to this moment. The air in the café now was warmer, a stark contrast to the cold misty gray

ut now seemed far smaller in the larger sweep of life. You've been away, Rebecca said, her voice careful, but laced with an unspoken understanding. Scarlett nodded, not knowing h

ure. Her voice was steady, even though Scarlett could hear the edge of emo

en she was thinking, how she could always bring some peace right to the middle of all Scarlett's storms. There

admitted in a low voice. She never had know

barista's hands filled the space between them. You would always know how to find me here, Scarlett. It's been my second home for

ew someone well. She felt, in that moment, that Rebecca wasn't just welcoming her back into the café, but ba

a why she'd come to this reunion. Why this reunion felt urgent b

rle

right smile, was looking at her with interest.

she a

? He asked

t even was. The café felt familiar, but the specifics of he

Scarlett's hesitation, sitting down at one of the corner tables. Scarlett followed h

espresso makers. Rebecca waited patiently enough, her gaze steady and still. Scarlett knew Rebecca

hful, without revealing too much. About

focused on Scarlett's face. Promis

been such a pressure inside of her mind fo

world kept talking in undertones and hushed promises. I cannot shake it in my head. It can't explain, I believe wha

ern, and then this careful, thoughtful consideration that rose whenever they had been close, whenever they had trusted each other with fears and uncertainties. Secrets are

per now. What if they're the only way I can make sense of every

istinct figures moving to cross the cobblestones on nervous feet. Then her eyes

rlett, she said to her. But be sure i

conversation between two old friends reconnecting. There were depths under Rebecca's words chosen, hints of truths half-spoken, and suspicion that Hawthorne, as changed as it seemed, hid in the foggy depths, secrets. Scarlett took a long breath and steadied herself. So, you reckon som

s working

top herself. It felt like a thread she wasn't quite sure she was going to pursue or leave there alone, and Scarlett knew what curiosity sounded like. Who decides what's better left buried, Rebecca? Again, Rebecca paused, and Scarlett felt it, between them, a weight hanging. It's just that sometimes we dig

e childhood years here, the silences of schooldays and old friendships. But what ha

quiet one could hardly hear the w

tightening around her mug as if

decide wheth

ve outdistanced them. Scarlett's dry throat. Rebecca's words couldn't be ignored. She had thought about her life situation. It was a simple matter to just run off from Hawthorne and put this town in the rearview mirror. Now that she'd come back, though, it seemed as if all those spirits in this old town m

at Rebecca was wrestling with words, the tension in the angle of her shoulders, and then finally in the hand curled tightly

dge of some revelation, just out of reach. But what if I need to know? She p

unspoken weight of it as it might even crush air from out of Scarlett's lungs. Some t

ut what did that even mean? What lay there waiting for her in the darkness of her return? Hawthorne had alw

said in an undertone, trying to decipher the words. "Secrets p

tself but sometimes the people in it. Things we bury in our families, in our hearts, th

go away. She recalled stories of disappearances and muffled whispers of family secrets. Was her fa

voice sounded more cutting now, urgent. She didn't care she sounded confro

ecting, Scarlett, she said. I know you're scared and confused. And I know you have questions you th

in a jumble of fear, curiosity, and frustration, knowing that Rebecca wasn't th

I do? Leave

er gaze unreadable then

mained unsaid and unspoken. What would it be worth to her to let the secrets of Ha

t beyond her reach in thr