-*- (Prologue - Remember)

Ashlyn remembered the first time she felt the wind kiss her cheeks and the sound of the river thundering below her feet. The worn and water weathered bridge embracing markings of summer love and winter romances; peppering the pallid wood in names and symbols remaining secret, but to those who marked it.

Ashlyn remembered her untouched desires. The adoration, love and ever burning passion did not wane for many years, blooming in her heart and mind, until it lay distilled in the murky depths of her gaze.

The sun peeked out between the bruised clouds, a butterscotch amongst blueberry black, fighting against the storm waiting to rage. The cool chill settled beneath the folds of velvet clothes and silken hair.

She remembered the silence. Not a word spoken nor given, simply vanishing as if She were merely the smoke of a dying fire.

Ashlyn remembered a phantom. It clung to the hinges of her thoughts. A phantom with clear, blue eyes. The gaze a shade darker than the sky and a fraction lighter than the ocean, prone to change like summer storms. The unreadable gaze unnerved her and yet thrilled her, goading her to react, to dive deeper beneath the surface.

Ashlyn remembered her tempting closeness. The whisper of her hair against her skin. The innocent smiles and heartfelt promises.