After the avalanche

Alfred Kewood and Nella Milo signed a contract: they would marry for three years, after which they would divorce. Nella agreed immediately. Alfred had no idea that she had secretly loved him for a full decade. When he proposed a marriage contract, she felt a quiet sense of joy, believing that her ten years of unspoken affection had finally come true. The situation took a sudden turn when a phone call informed him that his childhood sweetheart had been kidnapped. Alfred abandoned Nella and rushed to the Glaciarote snow mountain, only to encounter an avalanche en route. "Zoe was kidnapped in an incident; I must go and rescue her. You go alone to see the aurora first—once I save her, I'll return." He failed to return on time. The snow and ice blankets the land; Nela nearly perished on the icy wilderness, and the love he had nurtured for ten years vanished completely in the bone-chilling cold. On the day the three-year contract expired, Alfred's fingers trembled as he handed over a new agreement with eager anticipation: "Nella, this marriage pact lasts for a hundred years—would you please sign it?" Nella examined the document with such calmness that it made Alfred uneasy. She gently pushed the contract back and said with a faint smile, "Our contract ends today; I will not sign it again." It was only later that Alfred learned how Nella had nearly lost her life during the avalanche he had left behind. His eyes welled up with tears as he realized he had completely lost her. Her love dissipated like the wind; once the wind ceased, her remaining life could never be complete again.