Dearest Adeline,

_It has been awhile, hasn’t it? I believe about six months. _

_Not even a whole day and night after you left me at daybreak did the suitors start lining up. I told them that I had to finish my latest portrait of my mother before I chose one of them. _

_I haven’t started painting. _

_I would rather lie than be another’s queen. _

_I hope one day you’ll come back to me, that maybe you didn’t leave because you didn’t want me. That you had a reason that wouldn’t break my heart again. _

I will continue to stall for time in hopes that you may return.

_Sincerely, _

Amyatha

xxx

Merin rushes forward, dogding trees and logs as I sit backwards on the saddle, shooting arrows faster than the theives following us could comprehend. We continued rushing forwards, breaking through the trees and onto a grassy field, the palace of Corlinea looming on the horizon.

I shot down each and every one of the theives I had angered, shooting with the precision that had been the reason I ended up here. A whole half year trapped in a system of kidnapping and stealing and dark trades with a side of malice. I am so glad to be rid of it.

I could smell flowers on the wind. Flowers and rain and spices and mud. I could smell home. I urged Merin forward, hooves creating a soothing rhythm as I tilted my head up to the sky, letting the rain fall onto my face and wash away the blood and dirt. Wash away my past and let me focus on my present.

xxx

Dear Adeline,

I’m not quite sure why I continue to write to you, I don’t even know where you are. I guess part of me still hopes that one day you’ll write back. That maybe I won’t always stay unanswered.

_I have set up a challenge for the suitors. They have to string your bow and shoot through 12 axes clean, just as you did. _

I will suffer through a marriage if you don’t show up again, I’ll continue to stall, though, incase you do.

Sincerely,

Amyatha

xxx

There were garlands handing from the balconies of the towering buildings lining the road and flowers overflowing almost every shop. Colors were just as common as the villagers roaming through the streets.

Everyone parted for Merin, the street almost too wide for the large horse and all the carts and shops. Spices were floating through the air, the aroma twisting with the smell of baked good and smoked fish. Merchants stood giving their pitches for anti-age potions and other fascades, most were smart enough not to pay for them but some tourists bought them with large smiles on their faces.

The clothes that decorated each person and the laundy lines high above were just as colorful as the flowers decorating everywhere. The City of Andred was known for its color and “magic”.

When I found my beautiful tower the queen had gotten for me Merin stopped. I had won an archery contest and won this tower a few years ago. Merin has stables in the bottom floor and there are two floors before the top floor where I stay. The second floor is full of old books and scripts while the third floor has art and paints and a small section dedicated to pottery. The top floor was my bedroom along as a spot to prepare herbs and whatnot for my apothecary business.

There was a ladder leading up to the roof where you could sit and the red shingles and stare out over the City. You could see the palace clearly from there. That was my next stop.

xxx __ __ __ Dear Adeline, __ Tears make the ink run as I write this and I apologize for that. __ _Today is the second day all the suitors are trying to string your bow. They have all failed. They are getting angry. They take up space within these sacred walls. The servants have whispered of them in my ear. I have seen them and heard them. _ __ Some of them I don’t mind, they are quiet and dare I say kind. Others though, are not the case. They are loud and rude and I can’t continue to listen to them stomp through the halls, muddying the tiles and hearing the drunken laughter all through the night. There is one who seems to be their leader, I guess I can’t call him a leader, they follow him out of fear. He is arogant and always has a weapon handy. He has been the most difficult to deal with. __ Today he caught me alone in one of the halls, the “leader” I mean, he had forced me up against the wall and put his mouth on mine. Put his hands on me. When he realized I was frozen he unsheathed his dagger and held it at my throat, saying I better kiss him back or there wouldn’t be a queen. Luckily a maid came out of the lavatory down the hall and he got off me. Now I sit sobbing, wishing you were here, I know you would’ve known what to say or do. I know you would’ve saved me. __ Please come home, __ Amyatha __ __ __ xxx

I stood amongst the suitors for the queen, cloak concealing a feminine face and a bow and arrows of all tips and daggars of all sizes. The sun was setting, the crowd was lit sparcely, groups of men in small numbers. One group was particularly loud, they held large cups of foaming liquid, probably acholic liquid from the way they were acting. One man stood cloaked in shadows, not joining in the conversation. The loudest of men were talking of a challenge. Stringing a bow and shooting through twelve axes. They were wondering which man could do it. Some of the other men would try tomorrow. The scowl on the quiet man’s face grew deeper as the conversation continued.

Eventually he spoke, stepping into the torch light, “Can’t you imbeciles see? - The queen is stalling! First the painting, now an impossible challenge - she’s never going to choose one of us!” Some of the other men started to gather around as the man continued his rant in an angry tone, “I say we should kill the guards, find the queen and take advantage of her before we force her to choose one of us!” The man raised his glass, “And anyone for it can join me!”

The men around him cheered before raising their own glasses. My anger flared, they couldn’t do this, not to her. I unsheathed a particularly mean daggar before stalking towards the man, I crept behind him before I plunged the daggar deep into his back and vanishing into the crowd and into the grand garden that held all the guards and the doors to the palace.

The maze had walls of rose bushes that were six feet tall at the least. There were different colored sections and you had to pass through each color to get to the entrance to the palace. There were white roses, they surrounded the doors, yellow roses, there was a small baskalisk in that section, black roses, you would have to faces your greatest fear there, red roses, a blood sacrifice, orange roses, sacrifice a memory to the flames, and pink, face your greatest desire. All the men would have to go through these.

I entered the maze, the first section red. A cauldron sat in the middle, empty and black, I approached and held my hand over the large pot. I could feel heat from the bottom rising upwards, like it was hungry for blood. I brought out a knife, smaller and sharp, and I pulled it across my wrist, wincing as the red dripped into the pot and a passage opened through the flowery thorns. I tucked the knife back into it pocket and slipped through the branches before they closed behind me.

Next was yellow. As I stepped into the new clearing, I examined the space. The goal wasn’t to kill the beast. The goal was to escape it. The second I passed through the passage to opposite me, probably about thirty feet at least, the bushes would close again. The beast reveals itself the second I step forward, slithering our of the thorns, thick scales protecting it from the biting teeth of the flowering stems. I started to run. The creature was long, 10 feet maybe, and agile. My only goal was to hope it wouldn’t catch me. I continued to run, stumbling over rocks that prodruded out of the ground.

And then I fell.

I hit the ground hard, turning over harshly so I could watch the creature. Shiny scales, even in the dark, sharp, venemous fangs, but I stopped there. Not the eyes. Then I would have no chance to save the queen. I glanced quickly around the garden, remembering the horrified faces of thieves and criminals that had looked this beast in the eyes. Stone in the garden, the knew statues for decoration. That would not be me.

I pulled out my knife, readying myself for the fangs that would strike my skin. But they never did. Instead, the creature dropped to the ground, sword through its back and many, many men behind the corpse. We were all officially dead.

(part 2 coming soon)

Ty, Two things I’ve learned best from you. Love and heartbreak. The two most important things in life, the two things that create life. I know you’ve made a mistake, I know you know that. I just want you to know that I love you. I’m sorry I never told you before. Emily.

I read the letter over and over again. Trying to stop myself from feeling the relief that was washing over me. The relief of knowing Emily didn’t die thinking I hated her. Even if she didn’t know the whole truth. At least she died, knowing I still cared for her.

I grabbed a pen, and started writing.

Emily, Please tell me you died knowing I loved you. Because it’s the only thing in this crazy world I was sure of. And you taught me things to. Life isn’t short. It’s long and painful, most of all lonely. But with you Emily it felt short. It should have been longer, seventeen years that’s not enough. Not for anyone. And I love you too. I wish I got to say that to your face. I dreamed of doing it, so many times. In so many ways and so many different places. I never imagined this, but maybe it’s good enough Maybe some crazy thing out there will take my letter to you. I love you. Ty

Ten years later

Ty’s letter stayed in Emily’s dresser drawer. The edges turning yellow from age. In the right corner, there was a small scribble. The world is a crazy place. It read.

Monday, January 16th;

Dear Henry, I couldn’t help but think about you all night, I know we aren’t together but today would be our twelve month anniversary. Honestly, I just wanted to say, hello? How are you today?

Wednesday, January 18th; Dear Victoria, Hey, I’m good. Yeah, Monday would’ve been our twelve month anniversary. I remember our first anniversary when you stuffed the chocolate cake in your face and almost choked on the dryness of the cake, we was up all night laughing about how dry the cake was. I remember staring into your eyes and you was wearing your black long coat, dark jeans, and your hair was in a ponytail. It was snowy outside, and the snowflakes kept falling down on our faces, I remember how heavy your boots was, it was hard for you to walk. You tripped seven times up the snow mountain, we climbed up the hill, just to build a snowman. But I hope you’re good.

Friday, January 20th; I remember that day, do you remember when we was younger and you used to pretend to get sick just to miss football practice and I would pretend to get sick too so we wouldn’t have to go to school, our parents would leave off to work and you would walk to my house just to see me and we would be jumping on the bed, watching scary movies, eating the popcorn that my dad told me not to eat, and then finally we ran up and down the streets before our parents got back home. Your smile was amazing, you had wonderful set of teeth, your lips was always warm and your blue eyes stood out the most, i couldn’t help but get lost in your eyes whenever we locked eyes. It was hard to break eye contact, but the more we gazed into each other eyes, our love grew for each other. Where did we ever go wrong?

Tuesday, January 23rd; Dear Victoria, Good question, where did we go wrong? Hey, you want to meet up tomorrow after work?

Wednesday, January 24th; Dear Henry, I’m sorry. I can’t, I have this super important meeting tomorrow. How about next week?

Thursday, January 25th; Dear Victoria, That’s right, I remember how it went all wrong. You became a workaholic, everything was work work work after you graduated law school.

Saturday, January 27th; Dear Henry, I’m sorry. I’ve been just super busy, the schedule has been late. Henry, stop, you know you can’t be mad at me for too long. I truly do miss you and I love you, but work is also kind of in the way. We can meet up on our next anniversary, the same place you asked me out, same time. If that’s okay with you?

Dear insert-name-here, Thank you For breaking My heart. Without you, I wouldn’t be Where I am. Thank you For not wanting me As much as I wanted you, Because now I found someone. Thank you For either Not saying anything when I confessed, Not caring when I confessed, Or just not reciprocating My feelings. Because if you hadn’t Put me through All that pain And suffering I wouldn’t have found Someone who actually Wants me For me.

Hello Jill, I need to know, why have you broken up with me? I really thought we were solid, and our relationship was going places. I don’t understand what happened For you to have a change of heart.

Well Lawrance, to be honest I got cold feet. You know how I really feel about you. I just feel that things were moving very rapidly, and I got spooked. I’m really sorry, I should had not reacted like I did. I have been very sad and lonely every since I walked away.

Jill, it doesn’t have to be this way, come back we have great chemistry together. We were meant to be together, I knew you know that. We can slow things down and make some changes, but breaking up is not the answer. Love is meant to be forever We need to be together, I’m lost without you .

Hello Lawrance, I been thinking and your right. My love for you is just for you. No one can take your place. I also need to be with you. I have cried my eyes out , I thought I had lost you forever. I want to be with you forever no more cold feels. True love is unbreakable. Thank you for being you and for loving me like you do.

Jill , how could I not love you. To me your the best thing that has happened to me. I know now what to do and what not to do. No matter the situation, you can always talk to me. Your my true love and only love. I would not trade you for the world.

                              Written By:
                              Ghostrider 
                              10-08-2022

Dear Dominick,

It’s been a while… how you’ve been? I can’t stop thinking about you. Your voice, your smile, your eyes, your laugh and just everything about you has been swarming all throughout my mind and I hate it. There is not one ounce in me that doesn’t love you. You’re my fucking everything Dom. It hurts. It hurts to the point where I don’t know if I could love anyone else the way I love you. All texts, the pictures, phone calls, voicemails and memories are what’s killing me. I’m falling apart more and more each day that passes because, I can’t call you mine anymore. Maybe us breaking up was for the best for right now but, if we’re meant to be we will find our place in this world someday. Remember, you will always be my everything and I will never give up on us.

I love you always ,

Marissa.

Dear Marissa,

It made my day hearing from you. I knew I loved you from the moment I laid my eyes on you. My love for you will never change beautiful. Something about you is so different Marissa. You’re not like any other girl I have come across in this world. You’re perfect in my eyes no matter what you look like or how many mistakes you make. You will always be an angel to me. I pray everyday that somehow, someway we will come together again. Like you said right now is not our time but I know for sure that one day will be our time again. No one will ever compare to you, there’s not one person who will ever receive that amount of love I have for you. You’re my forever. I’ll wait for us no matter how long it takes.

I love you forever,

Dominick.

I dreamt last night I saw you on the streets Of the city In which once we lived And maybe loved Though it’s hard to know From this distance

I heard last night As if from behind my shoulder A whisper And I knew at once This echo of you Though it’s hard to know In this instance

I tilt my head Tell myself I feel your breath caress My neck In that sweet spot Where you favoured flirting But it’s hard to know In your absence

"I loved you so much. I always tried to be there all the time. I supported you, stood up for you... The only reason why I wasn't even more was because you didn't let me. I feel you emotionally loved me but didn't want to be around me much. All our deep conversations... But always in messages. Why? How could we have been so close, yet so distant? And now you break this to me? That you are willing to lose your humanity to do justice with your own hands? Who do you think you are? Who have you become??"

"I loved you too... But I had my life plans you were incompatible with. I am about war, you are about peace. I am fire, you are water. I couldn't take you from your world to bring you to mine. And I swore to myself that I would never again let anyone get between me and my goals. Having chosen you would mean giving up my goals. That is why I kept you at bay. I couldn't allow myself to fall for you..."

"I cannot understand. You often complain people have abused you and now you're refusing someone's true love."

"I've trusted too much... And now I can't anymore... My world is too brutal and you are so kind. Uniquely kind. Maybe my humanity is lost already. I am so sorry."

Dear Miranda,

Hey, long time no talk! Sorry it’s taken me so long to get around to writing you back. Life here in Seattle is way different than it is in Michigan. The rain is pretty consistent. It’s perfect here. Maddie and I have been complaining about the thunderstorms all week. That’s something I have to tell you about, actually. When Maddie got word that I was out in the area, she messaged me, asking to meet up. So we did. Seeing her, felt like no time had passed between us. Our conversations kept circling around to the relationship her and I had all those years ago. We started meeting up more often. Two weeks after I showed up here, she called off her engagement to her fiancé. She said she realized what she lost when her and I broke up. I know this is the last thing you want to hear, but with all the history you and I have, I guess it wouldn’t feel right if I kept this from you - we’re dating. It’s slow and steady right now.

I don’t want this letter to revolve only around me though. Tell me what you’re doing. Are you still writing? Did you get that promotion at work?

I still have some of your writings saved on my laptop. Sometimes I still read them when I’m feeling homesick. The way you write about home makes it feel like I’m right there next to you. I miss you Miranda. Life is so messy and there’s apart of me that resents that this is our new reality. I thought moving out here would help me. You know I’ve always wanted to move out here. And I love it here, don’t get me wrong. Then when Maddie came back into my life, that felt like another step in the right direction.

Yet, here I am, thousands of miles from you, and I still catch myself thinking about you. About us. These coffee shops are full of people that I can see creating incredible characters out of. I grabbed some takeout the other night from this local Chinese place and it reminded me of when you tried to make rice for the first time and you burnt it to the pan.

Anyways, I’ll let ya go. Write soon, okay?

Jay

Dear Jay,

Hey stranger! It’s good to know you’re still in one piece and that Seattle’s being good to you! I’m still writing every day! Obviously some days are way easier than others, but it’s the hard days that make me feel so much more relieved when I finish up my newest piece. I didn’t end up getting that promotion though. Remember Jared? That heavy set chef, the pot smoking one? He ended up with the job. My guess is he did some ass kissing to Collin. Honestly though, I think not getting the job is for the best. The pay raise would’ve been nice, but the extended hours I would’ve had to give, would’ve taken me from being able to write. Gotta have priorities!

I know I can’t put off this part of the letter any longer though. I should be able to say that I’m happy for you and genuinely mean it. But I can’t. Maybe because all of your news is still fresh. I know we have years upon years of history together and we did try more than once, to get it right. I don’t know why it just never seemed right for us. For years I blamed the timing. We were so young back then. We had no idea who we even were yet. But I thought we’d grow into becoming our authentic selves together.

But then it was like I was going in one direction and you went in the other. Part of me is angry we stayed friends all these years later. I tell myself that it’s time we move on, giving ourselves a chance at an actual fresh start with someone new. I can’t though - all these memories come flashing forward again. Our summer trips with each other’s family’s, the countless nights we’d get entangled with each other until the morning. Our photos are the only ones I have saved, even after all these years. We’ve changed so much since our first selfie together. I miss you.

This is life though. The truth is, we weren’t right for each other. My brain knows this logical fact but my heart won’t let go. I ask myself, who is going to know me to the same, minute detail that you do? I can look at you with one look and you know exactly what I’m thinking. I’ve held you in my arms as you’ve cried, creating a space for us that’s safe from the outside world.

Anyways, I have to go, or else I’ll be late for work. Be safe out there.

Miranda

Dear Miranda,

You will always hold a special place in my heart. You’re going to find someone who loves you even more than me. He’s going to know that you hate iced coffee, that you can’t resist stopping at Taco Bell on long road trips, that you never cry in public. He’s going to love you so much. I’ll be a close second though.

I understand if you think that maybe this should be goodbye. I know it’s not fair to Maddie. I don’t talk about you to her. I know she’d be hurt and she’s so happy lately. I’m happy too. Her and I, we’ve got a lot in common and it’s an easiness between us that you and I just couldn’t quite get to. It’s been a few months since you wrote me and in that time, we decided to get an apartment together. We move in in one month.

I’m not saying any of this to purposely hurt you Miranda, you have to know that. I’m just saying it because if I don’t, I’ll never move on. You’d never move on either. This is the way it has to be. I wish it didn’t have to be though.

Jay

Dear Jay,

Wow, an apartment together! That’s exciting! I bet you guys are super excited.

You made me cry in your last letter. Don’t feel guilty, they were happy tears. Hopeful tears. I know you’re right, that the man I’m meant to be with is out there, maybe he’s even writing letters to his ex-girlfriend about their love story right now too. (Haha).

I was cleaning my room last week, (specifically my closets, because you know I don’t like leaving things on the floor) and I came across that ring you bought me all those years ago under my bed. It was way more tarnished than I remembered. Our names are still legible though. Our birthstones are cloudy though. I don’t know what possessed me to do it, but I put the ring back on my finger. It fit the same way it always had. Nice and snug. Memories of when how long it took you to track this thing all came rushing back. I’d debated throwing away this ring for years, but something new occurred to me. I’ve been so focused on the past and feeling hurt and angry that our love didn’t work out, that I haven’t reflected on all the years we did spend together. That even though the love we shared wasn’t meant for forever, but that doesn’t mean all those years weren’t genuine.

I feel ready to accept our love for what it was, for where we were in our lives. But I’m ready to open the next chapter of my life. I love you so much Jay, but I’m not going to allow myself to be consumed by a love that really hasn’t been there for many years.

I hope that you and Maddie will last, that you’ll create a life together, that’s full of love. We’ll always love each other, but it’s time to say goodbye now.

I will always love you. Goodbye Jay.

Miranda

Dear Miranda,

Keep that ring. One day you can show it to your husband and the three children I know you ache to have. You’ll tell them about that whirlwind first love you had.

I love you Miranda. Don’t forget about me when you become a famous romance author.

Jay

“Ding Ding Ding” the bell rang so I grabbed my things and went to the class I dreaded most. Everyday I walk to his class and it feels like pins and needles going through my chest as i get closer and closer finally reaching Mr.E. He looks at me and smirks as he knows my feelings towards him. I walk to my seat and I see a note addressed to me. I look up and see Mr. E looking at me with that same smirk he had when I walked in. I somehow knew what was already written but I rub my hand through my hair and read it anyway

           “Hey jelly bean it’s been awhile I see you walking in the halls and in my room you try to look away every time I look at you. I miss you”

I stop reading as this rage fills me knowing he hurt me last time and he’s okay with it. I rip it in half and I rip both pieces again. My finger starts to bleed for a cut, my eyes get heavy and tears fills my eyes. I get up and run to the bathroom leaving the ripped up note. A million thoughts going through my head. ‘How can he expect me to just forget everything he said to me’. The feeling of pins and needles come back even harder now as i realize the anger I feel so heavy is love. I’m angry that I love him, I’m angry that I allowed myself to fall for my English teacher. How stupid can I possibly be?