“Adelaide, Adelaide, wake up, sweetie. The doctor needs to clean your wound and change your bandages. Confusion washed over Adelaide. Bandages? A picture of Blake’s face flashed into her mind, and she jolted up in bed. Sharp pain shot through her ribs. Glancing down, she saw that there were bandages wrapped around her ribs below her chest. She lied back down gently and looked at her mother.

“Mom, he’s gone”, Adelaide said with a quivering lip. Tears filled her eyes, and she began to sob. Her mother grabbed onto her hand and cradled her daughter’s head as her daughter cried. The doctor walked out of the room for a moment to give the mother and her daughter some privacy. Adelaide’s sobs turned into screams, screams for her love who died. However, the screams for her love turned into screams of great pain. Her mother looked down at the bandages and saw the red that was bleeding through. The mother frantically yelled for the doctor to come back into the room. When the doctor saw what was wrong, he immediately went to work not offering any explanation for what was going on. He quickly undid the bandages. Blood flowed from the wound. Just what he had thought—Adelaide’s screaming had caused her punctured lung wound to hemorrhage. He began to shout orders to anyone that was close enough to hear him. He would do all he could to save her.

-------------------------------

Adelaide opened her eyes slowly. Everything was blurry for a split second before she realized where she was again. She was in the dark forest again. Looking to her right, she searched for the tree she had rested at before and ran towards it. The same wet, tattered dress she was wearing before was now a pristine white. Her golden hair flowed behind her, and her blue eyes became brighter. She ran past the tree with a smile on her face. She saw the light again, and her smile broadened because she knew what was just beyond that light. Her eyes fell immediately on Blake as she ran through the light. She approached him slowly. Reaching him, she ran her delicate fingers up his chest and neck to his lovely face, moving her fingers over his features, starting with his eyes, moving to his nose, and ending with his soft lips. Leaning in, she kissed his lips. She felt his hands entwined in her golden hair. He lengthened the kiss before pulling away and resting his forehead on hers.

“You came back,” Blake said.

“I missed you. Of course I came back,” Adelaide said.

“I thought you weren't going too,” Blake said.

“I would never leave you alone,” Adelaide said. Staring into his eyes, she was mesmerized by the love in his eyes. She always loved him, but now it felt purer to her, and it was an intoxicating feeling.

“I love you so much, Adelaide. We’ll be happy here together forever in our own paradise,” Blake said. He cupped her face with his hands.

“I love you too, Blake,” she said. Adelaide felt such peace and joy there with Blake. She was overjoyed to spend forever with him. Their paradise may have been small, but they didn't need anything grand. All they needed was each other, and that was enough to fill forever for them.