The Rose That Did Not Wilt

She was not just a friend.

She was a true light in her life.

She laughed loudly, was stubborn, dreamed, and loved life in a way that made everything seem easier.

Days before she left, she gave her a red rose and said:

"If you are sad one day… let it remind you that I am with you."

She did not know that sentence would be the final goodbye.

The accident was sudden…

A single piece of news turned everything upside down.

And since that day…

The red rose did not wilt, and the pain did not ease.

The red rose was not just a memory…

But it was the last thing her "friend" had touched.

She kept it with care, as if she were afraid of losing it as she had lost her friend.

She sat on her bed, looking at the red rose placed beside her.

Despite the passing days… she did not dare to throw it away, nor even to leave it far from her.

She reached out her hand and touched its petals gently, and whispered:

"It's still the same as it was…"

But in truth… it was not the red rose that was as it was,

But it was she who had stopped at that moment.

She closed her eyes, and went back in her memory to that day…

Her "friend" was laughing as usual, holding a red rose and waving it in front of her face

"If you are sad one day, take it, it will remind you of me."

She laughed at the time and said:

"And you? Who will remind you of me?"

She replied confidently:

"I could never forget you."

She suddenly opened her eyes…

She felt a pang in her heart.

"But I didn't forget you…" she said in a faint voice,

"You are the one who left."

She hugged the pillow tightly, the red rose between her hands,

As if she were trying to hold on to something slipping away from her.

In that moment, she realized something…

That the red rose was not just a gift,

But it was a promise.

A promise that her "friend" would remain…

Even if she were not there.

She looked at it for a long time, then smiled a small smile, tinged with sadness:

"Maybe… it didn't wilt,

Because you are still with me."