I use the word "unable" too much. In a way, I suppose it symbolizes the situation here pretty well. Unable to change the past, unable to go back to the way things were, unable to breathe, unable to hold back one's emotions, unable to cry anymore, unable to stop the pain, unable, unable, unable.

Unable to find an adequate replacement for unable. It doesn't even sound like a word anymore.

-Kitten

Her cries echoed through the house for what seemed like hours, every sound like a dagger in Ivan's chest. He sat, not moving except to cover his face in shame and regret, until her tears died down to a silent anguish, and an eerie stillness engulfed their home.

Ivan stood carefully, his own self-hatred and helplessness filling the empty air. He threw his chair across the room in frustration before sinking to his knees, afraid to cry but unable to stop.

He had failed his sunflower. She was the shining light of his world, and he'd cast her aside over a silly fight. He couldn't even remember what they were fighting about. It disgusted him.

He heard footsteps and looked up to see his love make her way downstairs, trailing a suitcase behind her. They stared at one another, desperate for answers, but neither could hold the other's gaze for long.

"I'm going to Maddie's house for a while," she said. "I don't know when I'll be back."

He could only nod.

"And... Ivan?" They faced each other again, this time not daring to turn away. "Do yourself a favor, and find someone to stay with. Don't let yourself suffer alone." With that, she took one last look around her home, and left without so much as a goodbye.

Madeline Williams preferred to spend her mornings alone with her thoughts and a cup of coffee. This was just as well, since she almost never had any visitors. Not that she complained, of course. It was nice, really, to relax and recharge before a busy day. Such was her life, the picture of bliss.

Knock knock knock.

Hm. That was unusual.

Knock-knock-knock-knock!

Madeline sighed. So much for a peaceful morning.

Knockknockknockknockknockknockknock!

"Alright, alright, I'm coming." Reluctantly, she pried herself out of her living room chair and opened the front door to...

"Amelia?" Only it couldn't have been her sister. Amelia didn't cry like this. She didn't cry at all.

"Maddie!" The distressed young woman wrapped her arms around Madeline tight enough to crack ribs, probably. It was definitely her sister.

"M-Mia-" Madeline struggled for a moment before the other woman released her. "Amelia, what's wrong?" She noticed the suitcase behind her. "Did something happen with Ivan?"

That was apparently the wrong thing to say. A round of unintelligible sobbing was all she could get out of her poor sister. She placed an awkward hand on the woman's shoulder in an attempt at a comforting gesture.

"It's going to be okay, Mia. Here, sit down, let me help you." She led her to the living room and gently sat her in a nice, comfy chair. "Do you need anything? I can make hot cocoa, if you want."

Amelia nodded, hunched on the chair like a pitiful, injured animal. Maddie draped a blanket over her shoulders and went into the next room to make cocoa.

When she came back, her sister was facedown on the floor, huddled into a pathetic lump under the blanket. Madeline shook her head and knelt beside the bundle of fabric and grief.

"Mia?" She tried her best to sound comforting. "What's going on?"

Amelia whimpered something Maddie couldn't make out.

"Uh... What?"

Amelia lifted the blanket and looked her sister square in the face. "H-h-h-h-he... I-Ivan... M-Maddie, h-he-"

"Amelia, breathe. It's going to be okay."

She nodded and took a series of uneven breaths before continuing. "H-he ch-cheated on me!" She fell into her sisters arms, dissolving once again into hysterics.

Madeline's confusion turned to shock, her shock gave way to rage, and her rage melted into pity. Everyone said that Madeline Williams always knew what to say to a hurt person. At least, when they remembered she existed. But really, Maddie was as lost as anyone else. She just listened, and people solved their problems on their own. Right now, however, Amelia needed her.

So Maddie sang. She sang and hummed and held her sister tight until the tears subsided, and both of them were asleep.