http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5932971/1/Lacrimosa
Word Count: 10,393

Official Description: Bella Cullen had it all – a loving husband, a home, a job, plans for the future – until one day, the visit no military wife wants to get destroys it all. EdwardxBella, NON-HEA.

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naelany says: I have to give a huge Thank You to Kassiah for letting me do this. I asked her if I could please rec Lacrimosa because in my opinion it is an absolute must-read, and she said “Sure, can you do it now?” So here I am!

Lacrimosa only posted yesterday, but I’ve been crying over it for the past week or so because I helped stolenxsanity work through it. Lacrimosa is Latin for ‘to weep’ or ‘weeping’. As you can guess by what I’ve just said, this is a sad story. You will need a box – yes, a box – of Kleenex to get through this. That said, it is a very good story, one that is told well and with a lot of heart.

What is it about, besides heartache? Well, let me tell you.

Bella Cullen has it all: a loving husband, a home, a job, and they have many plans for their future. Then one day, Bella gets the one visit that every military wife never wants to get, and her life as she knew it is changed forever. You get to receive the news with her, feel her heart breaking. You follow her through the next two weeks (give or take) as she struggles to come to terms with her new reality.

You get to see glimpses of their life together through her memories, but throughout it all – every heartache, every tear that is shed, every angry emotion expressed – you feel the love that she and Edward shared. You ache for her and, if you’re like me, you want nothing more than to reach through the screen and hug Bella, tell her everything is okay and this was just a nightmare. Except…it’s not.

Why am I rec’ing something so incredibly heartbreaking, you ask? Well, it’s quite simple, really. Excellent writing aside, it is a subject that is all too easily forgotten or pushed aside. Stolenxsanity has written it beautifully, and has done it great justice. I feel you all need to read it, if for no other reason than it will remind you of what you have, or – if you’re one of the unfortunate like Bella – what you have lost.

This is by no means a happy story to read, but one that nonetheless deserves your attention, and your love. You will cry – but they are tears well shed, and time well spent. So grab a box of Kleenex, maybe even a pillow to hug, and sit yourselves down for a few moments and give Lacrimosa a go. I promise, you won’t regret it in the end.

My thanks to all who serve their country – both those actively in the military as well as the families that stay behind and support them. Your sacrifice is great, and it is appreciated. God bless.

Kassiah says: This story has got to be one of the most heartbreaking things I’ve ever read. I simultaneously want to hug and curse naelany for telling me to read it. It’s beautiful and real and so, so sad. It’s a far departure from what I would normally read, that’s for sure. One of my best friends is a military wife, and I have a new appreciation for her.

It’s amazing to me how much your life can change when you are doing something simple and everyday-ish.

I’d been planning on what to make for dinner as I stood on the front porch sipping a glass of wine, waiting for a phone call that never came – that would never come.

I don’t know what else to say. This story is so real–the flashes of her life with Edward interspersed with her gut-wrenching grief. Her parents and his trying to console her to no avail. Her disconjointed feelings as she went through the motions and heard the sound of Taps.

I appreciate the sacrifice that all soldiers make for me and my family. I am thankful to their wives and families as well. There aren’t words to express my gratitude to them, and to stolenxsanity for writing Lacrimosa.