𝗦𝗼𝗽𝗵𝗶𝗮 𝗖𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝘁 𝗛𝗲𝗿 𝗢𝘄𝗻 𝗪𝗲𝗱𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗿𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗥𝗜𝗖𝗛 𝗢𝗟𝗗 𝗠𝗔𝗡 𝘁𝗼 𝗦𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗛𝗲𝗿 𝗙𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆. 𝗢𝗻 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗪𝗲𝗱𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗡𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁, 𝗛𝗲 𝗪𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗺—𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗛𝗲 𝗖𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗢𝘂𝘁, 𝗦𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝗙𝗔𝗜𝗡𝗧𝗘𝗗…

On her wedding day, Sophia stood in front of the mirror in a white dress. Her hair was neatly styled, and her hands trembled as she held a bouquet of wildflowers. Behind her, Maria approached and wrapped her arms around her.

The ceremony took place in a small village church. Michael stood at the altar in an elegant suit, his silver hair gleaming in the candlelight.

With a trembling voice, Sophia gave her consent, and he slipped a gold ring onto her finger. She sobbed as she married him, unable to contain the overwhelming mix of fear, hope, and sorrow. The guests believed she was crying out of happiness, but Sophia knew the truth.

After the wedding, Michael took Sophia to his home in the city. It was a grand mansion with high ceilings, marble floors, and servants who bowed whenever she entered. Sophia felt out of place, her simple countryside shoes looking ridiculous against the backdrop of such luxury.
Michael noticed her unease and gently took her hand. “Give yourself time to adjust,” he said kindly. That evening, exhausted by the day’s events, she asked for permission to retire to her room.

Closing the door behind her, Sophia collapsed onto the bed, finally allowing herself a moment to relax. But sleep wouldn’t come—her mind was racing with thoughts of what she had left behind and what lay ahead.
Soon, she was pulled from her thoughts by a strange sound—the muffled noise of running water coming from the bathroom through the wall.

Sophia opened her eyes, straining to listen. The sound was soft but persistent, like the murmuring of a stream, and in the silence of the enormous house, it seemed louder than it actually was. She sat up, her heartbeat quickening slightly.