A BLEAK MOUNTAIN

There's a man upstairs. You knew him well.

He's sitting at an easel, painting a place that doesn't exist anymore. A cigarette burns between his fingers. He's just as you remember him, more or less.

It's been some time since you last spoke. There are things you wish you'd said differently. Things you wish he'd bothered saying at all.

Ask him why things ended. Tell him how much it hurt. Talk about the weather, or his painting, or the life you were supposed to have together.

Spend all night trying to find the right words.

He'll wait for as long as you need him to.

A BLEAK MOUNTAIN is a standalone short story set in the same universe as Splendor & Misery.