Big Sister, Don't Cry

Lilia's gaze slowly turned towards Mellisa. The woman deliberately turned her face away, as if trying to hide her shaken expression.

Mellisa hurriedly got up from the sofa and headed for the window. With trembling hands, she took out a cigarette case from the pocket of her pants. Mellisa had a hard time pulling out a cigarette because her fingers wouldn't stop shaking.

Even though she tried hard not to show it, Mellisa could not hide the overflowing joy in her heart. She'd been expecting it from the moment they first met, and it turned out Lilia really was her younger sibling! All her efforts to protect that woman so far had not been in vain!

Mellisa lit her cigarette while closing her eyes. The harsh life she had lived for these five years flashed through her mind. For the first time in five years, Mellisa felt as if she had found hope. That there was a light at the end of the tunnel she had been walking through.