And at that moment she realized how blessed she was. Even though her life had taken a complete turn in the past few days, she knew deep in her heart that this was where she was always meant to be.
So, she accepted the grief as it flooded her. She let it consume her and understood that this was the first step of the ladder toward healing. And she was ready to heal, she thought, as her father's words echoed through her mind...
The only way to get to the other side is through it.
Epilogue
2 Years Later
Giselle's eyes were wide as she stared at him from her grave. Chris couldn't understand why he'd laid her down there if she was alive. He tried moving but his body remained frozen on the spot. All he could do was watch in horror as she clawed at the walls of her grave, covering her body with mud. She was crying, pleading for him to help her, but he couldn't move no matter how hard he tried.
"Chris!" she cried, clawing and scratching, burying herself.
He wanted to save her. He wanted to reach out to her. He wanted to replace her with himself, but neither could he move nor speak. He opened his mouth to say something, but no voice followed.
"Chris! Chris!" she chanted his name.
His invisible shackles loosened as Giselle's screams got muffled under the mud, then silenced, and he threw himself on top of the grave. He started digging with his bare hands, afraid of the pain she was going through under.
"Giselle!" he cried, "Hold on!"
Someone grabbed his shirt from behind and threw him on his back. Xavier, covered in the mud of his own grave, stood before him with a gun in his hand.
Chris looked at him in shock, then choked out, "She's dying! We have to help her."
He heard Giselle call him from her grave. "Chris! Chris, wake up!"
Xavier shrugged as if he didn't care. Then looked at the gun as if he cared way too much. He put it to his temple, licked his lips, and pressed the trigger.
"No!" he roared.
Gasping, he opened his eyes and found himself in the dark as two hands shook him. Without thinking, he flipped over and grabbed the person by the throat.
"It's me!" Giselle gasped. "It's me... Chris."
Panting, he loosened the grip and croaked, "Giselle..."
She held his face. "It's all right. I'm here. It was just a dream."
A dream... It was just a dream.
Exhausted, he let out a long shaky breath and removed his hand from her neck. She gulped. He lowered himself on her, covering her body with his. Still panting, he buried his sweaty face in her neck as she wrapped her arms around him.
"I'm right here," she whispered. "You're okay. We're okay."
It had been three months since he'd had such a nightmare. After Xavier, his, as well as Giselle's, mental health had deteriorated. It had been a long journey, but they’d made it to the other side.
He held her tight. The dream had felt too real. He'd been sure that he'd lost the love of his life. So, he held on to her in reality, felt her skin against his, and heard her whisper to him soothingly. After some time, his breathing evened out.
He rolled onto his back and pulled her to him. She snuggled closer, entangling her limbs with his, and rested her face on his bare chest. He kissed her forehead.
"Are you okay?" she whispered.
"Yeah..."
"Do you wanna talk about it?"
He shook his head.