Page 69 of The Fate of Us

I pound on the keys of the piano as the words echo through the room. I keep my eyes closed, focused on the feel of the music but when I hit the chorus and belt it out, I finally turn to the audience.

Don’t let me walk away from you

Don’t let me be the one to say goodbye

I never should have left the way I did

I didn’t mean to make you cry

I need you here next to me

Instead I sit here alone

I don’t know why I walked away without a word

So don’t let me walk away from you

I hum along to the melody, let the raspiness build in my throat as I approach the bridge to the song.

I need you now

I need you gone

I would rather be alone

I’m a mess

I’m a wreck

I was the one who never should have left

and I don’t know why

I don’t know why

So don’t let me walk away from you

Don’t let me be the one to say goodbye

I never should have left the way I did

I didn’t mean to make you cry

I need you here next to me

Instead I sit here alone

I don’t know why

I don’t know why

I don’t know why I walked away without a word

So don’t let me walk away from you

My fingers press into the final chords of the song and let them ring out as I sing the last lines. My voice cracking with the pain I feel.

I was the one who never should have left

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