She stares at the rusted surface of the blade. Passing a finger over the edge, she tests its sharpness, scrutinizing the metal. She can feel the steady acceleration of her heartbeat as the blade edges towards the pale smoothness of her wrist. She can no longer withstand the hopelessness and emptiness of her life, like a leech slowly sucking away her soul. She wants release. She couldn't pinpoint the exact moment when everything had fallen …showed first 75 words of 1100 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1100 total…and fall and blend into the vast blueness of the blanket. Those words strike a deep chord within her heart and she realizes that, like the evil trapped within Pandora's box, there is also hope. It is the beacon of light that shines through the dark silhouettes that clouds her mind, banishing all the bitterness, anger, sadness and emptiness in her life. Giving her hope of a better, fuller future for her mother and herself.