“I know,” Sylvia murmured. “I just… didn’t want you to be alone.”
I pressed my forehead against my knees, squeezing my eyes shut as tears pricked again. My voice came out hoarse. “It hurts so much, Syl. It hurts everywhere.”
Sylvia let out a slow breath. “Yeah. I know, honey.”
Another long silence.
Then she said quietly, “I saw Ace today.”
My entire body tensed. I bit the inside of my cheek hard. “Don’t.”
“I just… I think you should know he’s breaking too, Brit,” Sylvia said softly. “He’s not sleeping. He’s not eating. He’s been at my place twice, asking if I’ve heard from you. He’s scared out of his mind that he’s lost you for good.”
A sharp, painful breath rattled out of me. “He should have thought about that before.” My voice cracked. “He should have told me.”
Sylvia reached out, brushing a strand of hair from my face. “You’re allowed to be angry. You’re allowed to hurt. But Brit, you need to ask yourself — when the anger quiets down, what’s left? Because… sometimes we think we’re protecting ourselves by pushing people away. But really, we’re just building walls around our own heart.”
I shook my head, burying my face deeper into my knees. “I don’t know if I can forgive him.”
“That’s okay,” Sylvia whispered. “No one’s rushing you. But don’t let this be the thing that defines everything you’ve built together. Don’t let this be the hill you die on.”
Her words landed like small stones in the still water of my chest, sending ripples through the pain. I swallowed hard, blinking up at the ceiling as fresh tears slipped free.
Sylvia leaned back, her gaze distant, fingers twisting in her lap.
She went quiet — too quiet.
Then, softly, she murmured, “Brit, do you know why I was in that hospital?”
"No, you never told anyone and we didn't want to pry" I replied
"It is something I don't want to talk about because it always brings back bad memories. It is something I always keep locked up,but today I am going to tell you about my past..."she says sadly.
"When I was young, I thought life was all butterfly and sunshine. I had parents who loved me and gave me everything I ever asked for but everything changed when my dad left suddenly without a trace,mum fell into a deep depression which some how caused amnesia or dementia, whatever,but she had memory loss. She abandoned me and turned to drugs,my dad's divorce caused a huge toll on her life more than me. When I was 16,I started turning to men for attention, and that is when I met Jagger,he was 18 at the time and the heartthrob of our school,we Instantly clicked and started drinking and dating and having sex. Not long after,I got pregnant and then moved in with him. His place wasn't a place to raise a child but I had no choice,mom's wasn't a option and my dad had remarried and had a different family..."
She sighs
" Then I had my son Mason,I worked four jobs, balanced with school,soni could give Mason a good life. The abuse started when I got to college and Jagger turned 3. It started with a small shove here and there and then lead to him yelling and slapping me. I should have left Brit,I should have left for the sake of my son but he'd always apologize but I would go back to him and we'd have sex,I knew he was cheating but I needed his attention. ... I should have left until that night,the night I lost him"she bites her lips.
" That night,I had a feeling he was drunk and high but I thought it was just our usual argument...but he viaed off the road andknocked into a tree. He wasn't looking,I was too angry to buckle Mason's seatbelt well. That night,I lost my son in my arms,he died in my arms at hospital from internal injuries. Jagger died on impact from a broken neck. The autopsy report showed he was high on drugs...I lost my world then.."
She gently wiped her tears.
The silence afterward was suffocating, thick with memory and grief.
I reached over, sliding my fingers over hers, squeezing gently. “Syl…” My throat felt raw, my heart twisting painfully in my chest. “I’m so sorry.”
Sylvia gave me a small, wobbly smile, tears shining in her eyes. “We all carry things, Brit. Some of us just hide it better.”
She drew in a shaky breath, brushing at her cheeks.
“That’s why I’m telling you this,” she said softly. “Because you still have a choice. You still have time. Don’t let your anger be the last chapter in your story with Ace. Don’t let it be what you remember when you look back years from now.”
I dropped my head into my hands, a choked sob catching in my throat.
Sylvia’s arms wrapped around me carefully, her embrace warm and grounding. I let myself sink into it, let the walls crack just a little, let the grief spill out.
For the first time in days, I let someone hold me.
