Daphne's chest ached with raw pain and she was fighting to catch her breath by the time she reached the main lobby of the ship, but even then she didn't stop. She couldn't. Suddenly she longed to breathe the fresh air of the open ocean. At least beneath the stars she wouldn't feel so alone. The thought brought new tears that fell in tiny rivers down her cheeks, but she made no attempt to brush them away.
It was a long, long and very lonely walk round the massive ship and it was all but impossible to ignore the signs of romance that greeted her along the way. Couples hidden in corners sharing kisses and sweet gestures, couples walking hand in hand, laughing, talking, clearly in love. The images not only brought more tears but an ache in her heart that was almost unbearable. The ship began to feel claustrophobic and she hurried to the nearest exit that miraculously came into view like a silent answered prayer.
The moment she stepped outside she was hit with a rush of wind that caused her to wince, but the unexpected change in temperature was welcoming at best. As she walked around the ship's promenade deck, a memory surfaced and she shuddered, trying to push it away. But it came, regardless of her efforts and in doing so, her heart was pained even further.
In a teary daze she walked to the edge of the deck and glanced up at the star-filled sky, awash in a memory that was once the most wonderful of her life but now stung like a knife buried deep in her soul….