Bella felt as though she had fallen from a great height, crashing hard onto the ground. Everything inside her shattered at once — her hopes, her dreams, her strength. It was as if she would never be able to dream again.

The pain she had tried so hard to hide now burned openly, raw and unhealed. Accepting this defeat felt like an impossible task. Her brief moment of victory had turned to dust, leaving her more broken than ever.

She sat frozen on the ground, snowflakes drifting around her ...