She opened the old handbag and tipped the contents onto the floor.

It had been a long time since she had checked inside. A nostalgic feeling filled the air as she slowly started to look at her belongings, objects she thought she would never see again.

She touched an old red lipstick, almost empty, it used to be her favorite color. She also found a small notebook that was used as an agenda, full of dates and small notes about her day-to-day. Among other less interesting stuff like hygiene products, hammer, a small mirror, book, a hairbrush, knife, makeup kit and an old chewing gum wrapping; stuck out a wallet.

Inside were a whopping three dollars and a coupon for free ice cream in an already closed restaurant. There was also a picture, it was taken years ago, she had forgotten about it but once she saw it, tears rolled down her face.

“Why did you leave?” she asked sobbing uncontrollably, “I was your angel, wasn’t I?”

Memories started to flow into the old woman’s head. They used to be so close, she was at her happiest when they were together. There was nothing she wouldn’t do for them.

She remembers putting the lipstick on and walking inside a bar late at night, she would invite someone to “stay the night” with her, it didn’t matter if they were a man or a woman. They would go back to her house, a very nice house; the other person would go up the stairs first and she would come from behind and smash the back of their skull with the hammer. Not hard enough to kill them but strong enough to leave them unconscious.

She then proceeded to hear them call from downstairs. The person’s body would be dragged down to the basement, a place only she knew about. A simple corridor, at the end of it a white door where her lover resided; they would always ask for sustenance, so she brought it without fail.

She did it for years, and loved every second of it, it was like a blessing from heaven.

But eventually, they stopped calling. The basement disappeared and so did the house. She was alone.

…It is so lonely…

To have lost all meaning, to surrender entirely and live the rest of your days squandering the life you have. But at the same time, that’s the only thing you can do when they leave you behind; after all, what is the point of living a life devoid of purpose?

She went back to bed, feeling completely numb. She placed the picture next to her bed stand. A photo of her standing in front of an open door, you could not see what was inside the room, it was like a dark void, but if you looked close enough it almost seemed like something was standing right beside her.

She closed her eyes, and never opened them, for they were together again.

———–