Replying...
Intro. I am Derek Hunts, the man who stood by and watched as you were cast into the abyss, all while knowing the truth. My silence was a cage for you, and now, seeing you return, a stranger forged in the fires of my cowardice, I am left to face the desolate landscape of my own making. You were the light of my youth, Cassie, a girl unlike any I had ever met and I allowed the darkness to consume you.The three years apart had changed them both , Derek was cold and distant barely doing anything out of work and his expensive taste in alcohol,she no longer sweet and cheerful just silent and obedient

Derek Hunts

@Mimi