The Vow Of A Broken Heart

"Guiren, listen to me. It's not like that," A desperate voice choked out. A woman hurried after a man, her robes fluttering frantically as she tried to stop him at the door, "Please."

"What is not like that? Hasn't it always been this way? You played me again and again. What else are you going to do, Daiyu? Don't tell me you'll cry and expect me to fall for your tricks all over again," Guiren sneered.

Daiyu held back her tears. Since he put it that way, how could she even cry?

It wasn't her intention.

She didn't do it.

So many words just echoed blankly in her heart.

Yet, in the end, nothing made it past her lips. It was a love that made her soar and again, the same love that will kill her. Daiyu reached out and grabbed onto his sleeve. With a strong lash from his arm, Guiren tossed her away from him. Daiyu sank to the ground, her legs no longer had the strength to stand. Her heart seemed to throb greatly in pain, yet she felt nothing.

Nothing.

There had always been nothing.

How empty, she thought, how silly.

What a fool she had been.

Her heart flared up in anger.

"I'm your senior martial sister. You can't treat me like this."

Yet her words were hollow and held no power at all. Daiyu found it odd she was trying so hard.

This love will never stand.

She knew that all so well yet... she couldn't bear to part with it.

"Senior sister? You?! Don't make me laugh. Why should I call such a cold-blooded person such a respected title? You're just a waste of such a noble title!" Guiren roared, his hands pounded on the wooden table in anger.

Daiyu blinked.

What if I told you it was fake?

That person... she is still alive.

Would it change?

Would this all change?

A single teardrop rolled out her left eye, descending onto the ground. When did this all happen? How? Why was it... it didn't matter. It never did. She'll end this.

This pain.

This darkness.

This life.

"Fine, I'll give you the key," Her voice sounded awfully broken in the end. Her body sank listlessly to the ground. What else can she say? She did everything for him. It was always, always for him. Now that the last piece had been ripped out, what was left?

Nothing.

Guiren stared at Daiyu, his eyes stilled. His heart felt uncomfortable, but still, he shook off the feeling. This senior sister of his always clung on to him so tightly. She had controlled him and ruined all his chances. Apparently, that was her way of saying she adored him. What a joke. What kind of sick love was that?

Disgust quickly filled his heart, taking over his mind.

"Don't act all weak and innocent," He snorted coldly before he slammed the door harshly. The loud echo sounded throughout the hallway and seemed to penetrate within Daiyu's heart.

The broken maiden laughed bitterly into the night. Her laughter carried every drop of her pain to the moon. She reached up and felt her heart with her weak hands. Memories of the past quickly filled her mind as her breathing seemed to slow. The warmth of the past echoed in her heart. Pink blossoms that gently sway as two children played, along with the soft trickle of water that came from the fountain nearby.

"Master, master, this is the junior brother I chose," A girl called out to an old man excitedly, dragging a dirty, tattered boy along with her. The boy lowered her head in shame as an old man in white robes studied him. Seeing this, the girl stomped her foot and glared at her master before she hid the boy behind her.

Another scene swept into her mind, a now an older girl with the same face as the last, appeared. Her hand carried a simple bracelet with a pure crystal bead.

"Guiren, I made this for you," She said as her face blushed faint red. Guiren nodded, his eyes filled with delight. The soft red lighting of the lanterns glowed faintly on their faces.

Many more memories flooded into her mind.

"Once my people, always my people." Another promise not kept.

Another memory took place.

"Once you drink this drop blood, our fates will be tied forever always," Daiyu paused," Always."

"Always," Guiren echoed.

They were words without power, no meaning.

Daiyu opened her eyes, stopping the flow of happy memories. She lifted her dull eyes at the moon, softly making a promise as she drank a jar of wine.

"Once I die in this life for you, my love will cease to exist. No matter how much the flowers wish to bloom again, this spot will never fill."

As the last drop of wine left the jar, Daiyu smiled bitterly.

This will end our ties.

With the jar, she swung it to the stone ground, and the white porcelain shattered. Without any hesitation, she stabbed the sharp handle into her chest. The razor-sharp shards pierced through her skin, and Daiyu blinked slowly as the ground pooled with dark red blood, which strangely smelled like poison. She had already been poisoned, but it didn't seem to hold any value at this time. Her once white robes stained with the blood as her eyes watched dully without a word.

If you knew the truth, would you regret it? I want to see that face, yet I'll be gone by then.

Daiyu coughed.

Blood sprayed out of her mouth and painted the already bloodied floor.

This life will end my affection for you. You'll be free. However, I only wish I never, never see you again. I never want to fall in love with you again.

Never again.

Never.

Her eyelids slowly fluttered closed.

I'll keep that promise.

Always.