The following morning, Theodore walked upstairs carrying a small key that had remained untouched for years. Without saying a word, he unlocked the room and slowly pushed the door open.
Inside were his late wife’s paintings, his daughter’s toys, tiny shoes, and birthday decorations exactly as they had been left. Time seemed frozen within those walls.
He invited Ava inside, and together they gently cleaned the room without disturbing the memories it held. Sunlight poured through the windows, filling the space with warmth for the first time in years.
When they finished, Theodore quietly admitted that he hadn’t stepped inside that room since the day he lost his family-
