A Quiet Goodbye: A Young Woman’s Journey Through Grief, Love, and Loss

The bus let out a soft hiss as it came to a stop on the edge of a quiet village. Olesya stepped off into the light rain, one hand resting on her pregnant belly, the other clutching her coat. She was the only one to get off. The driver gave her a look of quiet sympathy before the bus pulled away.

The village was still. Bare trees lined the road, their branches slick with rain. The only sound was the soft tapping of droplets on her umbrella. Olesya walked slowly, her mind filled with thoughts of Andrey—his warm laugh, the calloused hands that held hers, and the way he said her name like it was something precious.

Her life before meeting him had been anything but easy. She grew up in an orphanage, later attending vocational school, then working long overnight shifts at a metal factory. Andrey changed everything. He was an engineer who didn’t mind getting dirty and who saw something in her that no one else had. Their connection grew over quick lunches and late-night talks. When she told him she was pregnant, he was overjoyed and proposed to her right there under the flickering dorm lights.

“I want you to meet my family,” he had said. But Olesya hesitated, nervous about how they’d react to her. So, three months ago, Andrey went to visit them alone. “Just a few days,” he’d promised.

He never came back.

People started whispering—he got cold feet, left her behind. But Olesya couldn’t believe that. Then, one day, she overheard the truth: Andrey had been mugged near a train station. He hadn’t made it.

As the chill of the rain seeped in, she realized her phone was gone. Looking for shelter, she spotted a small mausoleum nearby and stepped inside. “I just need to rest,” she whispered to herself.

Then—buzzing. A phone vibrated against the stone floor.

Not hers.

She picked it up and answered.

“Hi! That’s my phone—I lost it yesterday,” a man’s voice said.

“I’m in the cemetery,” she replied, her voice faint.

“I was working there. Must’ve dropped it,” he said.

“I wasn’t feeling well…”

Her vision started to blur. Her fingers loosened. The phone slipped from her hand.