“RUE!”
It’s a desperate wail—a raw, animalistic shriek. Nothing answers but a silence that reverberates in her very soul.
“Rue! Where are you?! Rue!”
Still, there is no answer. Her cries echo in circles, following her as she spins.
“Rue! Rue, come back to Mama, please! RUE—”
The next scream falls short, choked by a sob.
“Rue… Where did you go? Come back… please...”
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To our baby Rue,
It’s been a day since you left. Papa and I are quite worried. You’ve always been the adventurous little spirit, but this is the first time you’ve gone without a word. Please come back soon. We’ll be waiting for you, our precious daughter.
Love, Mama and Papa
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A little girl wanders along a moonlit road.
“Mama? Papa?” she whispers to the fog.
She doesn’t understand. She just wanted to pick some pretty flowers, so where did her Mama go? And Papa and their house too?
She only remembers the meadow with Mama’s favorite flowers. Oh, but there was that cute bunny she saw and followed for a while, even after it disappeared into a sea of grass that stood above her head. Before she’d realized, the moon had flown into the sky and her house had disappeared.
By now she’s walked for so long that her legs feel heavy and tired. Her body trembles against the freezing wind, knees knocking together as a scary howl echoes across the sky. The trees creak and bend.
“M-Mama…? Papa…?”
There’s no one there. Cold tears spill down her cheeks as she cries, and she tastes salt as she screams until her lungs hurt.
“MAMA! PAPA! RUE IS HERE! W-Where are you?!” Her throat aches. “Rue will be a good girl! Don’t leave Rue here alone… please… Rue is scared…”
Yet for all her voice echoes, she still finds herself stumbling along the path, crumpled flowers curled in her fist and her own footsteps her only answer.
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To our lovely Rue,
You haven’t come home for several days now. Is it fun out there? It must be—otherwise, there’s no doubt that you would’ve come back already. Be careful, okay? If you feel hungry or cold, we have plenty of warm food just for you. We’ll always be ready for you to return, so come home soon.
Love, Mama and Papa
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“Oh dear, what’s such a young girl doing alone here in the outskirts of the city?”
Rue blinks tiredly, trying to make out the blurry figure. Through her sleepy haze, she makes out kind eyes that look like melted chocolate.
“…Mama?”
“I’m sorry, child—I’m afraid I’m not your mama. But do you know where she is?”
Rue deflates, her little eyes watering.
“C-Can’t find Mama and Papa…”
She’s met with an expression full of pity.
“That’s alright, dear. How about this? Let’s get you inside for now since it’s very cold out here, and you look like you need to eat something. After that, we’ll see what we can do to find your Mama and Papa, okay?”
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To our dear Rue,
It’s been a month since you left. Hopefully, you’re comfortable and safe. Is it nice where you are? Are you eating well? Sleeping well? Mama’s made your favorite desserts: cinnamon rolls with hot cocoa and whipped cream. Papa has all your favorite bedtime stories ready to read and the stuffed teddy that you wanted for your birthday. Whenever you want to come home, it’ll be all yours. Happy birthday, Rue.
Love, Mama and Papa
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“Officer.” Two sallow faces greet the guest who steps through the door. The man’s face is grim.
“Sir, ma’am.” He hesitates. “It’s been too long, and there’s been no trace. I’m sorry, but we’ve been short on officers and there’s a very high chance that she’s already… gone. We’ve decided to stop actively searching.”
He stumbles when the woman barrels into him.
“No, no, our Rue can’t be gone!” she cries, her fingers trembling against the fabric of his coat.
The officer simply closes his eyes and bows his head. The woman wails. She staggers backwards and collapses against her husband, who holds her as she sinks to the floor.
“She—she’s just on one of her little adventures,” the mother mumbles, curling into herself. Her nails dig into her arms. “Rue’s fine—she’ll come home one day—”
“She’ll be okay,” her husband reassures, cradling her close as if she’ll disappear too. “She’ll come back.”
The tremor of his voice gives him away.
“Rue… Rue, my baby… I want my baby back!”
The two don’t look up even as the officer retreats, unable to bear the scene any longer.
.
.
.
Somewhere far away, a little girl too young to remember her family’s names is introduced to her new parents.
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To our darling Rue,
A year has passed since you left home. It feels a little emptier without you. You’ve always made us so happy. Wherever you are, we’re sure you’re making everyone that much happier too. Still, the door’s unlocked for you. We’re always ready to welcome you back home.
Love, Mama and Papa
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The sun sets on a small house, the light illuminating a third plate on the dinner table. The meal remains untouched.
The table itself is unoccupied, the only two inhabitants of the house sitting by the front window. A husband holds his wife’s hand, the other stroking a family photo, over the image of the brightly smiling girl who they never fail to wait for each day.
This isn’t good for them, he knows. But he also knows how fragile his wife is. Facing the truth would all but break her.
The happiest moment of their lives had been on the day Rue was born. The joy and love they’d felt when they held her tiny body in their arms—nothing could compare.
But now, Rue is gone.
So all he can do is be by his wife’s side, give her even just a fraction of what Rue gave them. If it keeps his wife with him, then he’ll be selfish this once and let her cling to hopeless lies.
He brings her closer to him, holding her so that her back leans against his chest before taking her hand again. His wife’s fingers curl weakly around his, the way he curls around her. Her vacant eyes—glassy and unseeing—never leave the yard. The world outside remains empty and still.
.
.
.
Elsewhere, a little girl is tucked into bed. As she watches her new dad pull out a storybook, she thinks that he reminds her of Papa. Except… What did Papa sound like? What kind of stories did he read to her? How had he stroked her hair? She can’t remember.
As her eyes close, memories turn to distant dreams of a grassy field, of hot cocoa and cinnamon rolls, of fairytales and flowers.
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Rue,
Twenty years have passed. Are things alright, wherever you are now? Just know that there’s no need to let us distract you from your life. It must be a great, big adventure to keep you away for so long.
But, if it isn’t too much to ask, your Papa and I would really love to see your face again. Just once. It’s been so long, and we love you. We’ll always wait until you’re ready to return.
Love, Mama and Papa
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A young woman excitedly opens the door.
“Mom! Dad!” she calls. “I did it! I got the job!”
An elderly couple smiles in return, and she laughs as she’s swept in a hug.
Suddenly, she’s lifted by the waist from behind, and she shrieks as she's swung around. When she’s finally put down, her smile has stretched so wide that her cheeks hurt.
“Congratulations, Rue.”
Warm eyes stare into hers, and her forehead bumps against her lover’s as he looks adoringly at her and presses a kiss to her lips. Her eyes slip shut, her smile growing fonder when his hand—adorned with a ring identical to the one on her finger—entwines with hers.
She couldn’t be happier.
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Rue,
I’m sure you’re living well and that wherever you are, you’re happy. Your Papa misses you. If you have the time, it’d be nice if you could come visit us.
You’re thirty now, aren’t you? Are you happy? Have you found someone to love? A job you love? Perhaps you even have a family of your own now. I’d love to meet them. I must admit that I’ve been curious.
Just remember that I’ll always wish you the best.
Love, Mama
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A wizened man coughs harshly from where he rests on his bed, but he ignores it in favor of comforting his wife, wiping tear streaks from her face.
“Don’t cry, love.”
“How can I not? You can’t leave—you haven’t even welcomed Rue back yet!”
“Rue will be fine with or without me, as I’m sure she is right now.” His smile is wistful and his eyes speckled with unspoken sorrows. “You’ll still be there for her too.”
“Please… you can’t leave me alone… I can’t—”
He hushes her with a weak embrace, thinking of how he doesn’t want to go yet. Not if it means leaving his wife alone, before he can hold her and their daughter together again.
That winter, a father takes his last breath, holding an old teddy that never met his daughter’s arms as closely as the regrets that never left his heart.
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Rue,
Papa can’t wait for you anymore, but he’s always loved you. He always will too. Do you think you can come home sometime soon? Don’t worry if you can’t, but it would mean the world to me if I could see how my lovely girl grew, even for just a moment.
Love, Mama
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A widow withers away at her window. She holds a framed photograph against her chest with too frail arms as she thinks of all she’s lost.
Her cracked lips press to the chilled surface of the photograph, her fingers tracing the faces of the girl she waits for and the man who she knows is waiting for her.
She feels cold to her bones, but her eyes remain on the empty yard outside. Her gaze never leaves, forever waiting, even as her body gives and glass slips through her fingers to shatter against the ground.
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Dear Rue,
If you’re alive out there, I’m so sorry, my precious baby. I don’t think I’ll be able to wait anymore. I hope you don’t hate this mother for losing you all those years ago. It must’ve been lonely then. I’m sorry that I couldn’t make you happy or see you grow into the wonderful young woman you must’ve become, but know that I’ve always loved you. I hope more than anything that someone was able to make you smile when I couldn’t.
Papa and I will be watching over you, always. Maybe one day, you’ll come home. I only regret that I can’t be there to welcome you back when you do.
Love, Mama
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A loving wife and mother of three kneels in a dust-coated room of the house she plans to move into. Faded pictures of a happy family decorate the walls, and the bed is littered with worn toys.
Shaking hands hold years of letters never delivered, tears dripping onto the crinkled papers and staining the smudged ink beneath her fingertips as she remembers. Her lips quiver painfully, but still, she manages a bittersweet smile as she cries.
“Mama… Papa… I’m finally home.”
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