At work, the archive room was cold, even with the heating on.

  The air smelled like dust and forgotten memories.

  She opened a box labeled 1999 – Letters, and immediately felt a strange pull in her chest.

  Inside was a photograph of her and Adam, taped to a yellowed note.

  She stared at the photo, her breath catching in her throat.

  “Did I… forget this?” she whispered to herself, her fingers trembling as they traced the edge of the paper.

  “I never left. You just stopped looking.”

  She gasped, her heart thundering in her chest.

  Her hands shook violently now, unable to hold the fragile paper steady.

  She hadn’t seen this box before.

  Had someone placed it here for her to find? Or had it always been here?

  "Someone’s playing with me," she thought, her mind racing with possibilities.

  Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

  But then a darker thought crossed her mind.

  "Or maybe it’s me. Maybe I’m losing my grip on reality."

  She didn’t know which option terrified her more.

  With a sudden, determined movement, she took the photo home, the weight of it pressing against her chest like a secret too heavy to bear.

  That night, as she walked down the hallway, the lights flickered above her, casting eerie shadows on the walls.

  She paused, staring at the old photograph again.

  Adam’s eyes, frozen in time, seemed different now.

  Sadder. Sharper. As if they knew what she had become.

  And what she would face.

  The chill in the air seemed to echo with unspoken words, as though the house itself was holding its breath.

  She looked at the photo one last time before putting it away.

  "Maybe he’s not gone," she whispered to herself.

  "But what if I’m the one who’s gone?"