𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐕𝐘 𝐒𝐄𝐗𝐔𝐀𝐋 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐓! 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐂𝐄𝐄𝐃 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐂𝐀𝐔𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍.
𝗖𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗱.
For five years, I was caged-locked in a life I couldn't escape, a nightmare I couldn't wake up from.
At an age when I should have been dancing under the star...
The second those three words leave my mouth, the bowl in Kiara's hand slips through her fingers and crashes against the floor, shattering into tiny, jagged pieces. The sound is sharp, but it feels muffled, like I'm underwater.
Her eyes widen, pupils dilating in shock as she stares at me, frozen. "What?" she gasps, her voice barely a whisper.
The room suddenly feels too small, the air too thick. My chest tightens, but for the first time, the weight I've been carrying around feels just a fraction lighter. Admitting the truth out loud makes it feel real. And this time, I know I won't be dismissed or doubted.
Kiara won't turn her back on me. She'll believe me.
Seconds tick by, stretching into what feels like hours. She opens her mouth to say something, but no words come out. Her lips part and close again, trembling slightly as she struggles to process what she just heard. Her face is pale, eyes glassy with unshed tears.
I part my lips, about to say something—anything—to break the suffocating silence when the door suddenly swings open.
"What happened? What was that noise?" Niall's voice cuts through the tension, pulling us both back into the present.
Kiara's eyes snap to him, still wide with shock. She stiffens, and I quickly step in, masking the turmoil with forced calm. My voice is steady—too steady. "The bowl slipped from her hand," I say quickly, flashing him a reassuring smile.
He glances at the shards of broken glass scattered on the floor, and after a brief pause, he nods. "Be careful, yeah?" he mumbles, grabbing a handful of chips from the bag on the counter. Without another word, he heads back into the living room, completely unaware that the world had just tilted on its axis.
The door clicks shut behind him, and just like that, we're alone again.
But Kiara is still frozen, staring at me like she's just seen a ghost. Her chest rises and falls unevenly, and she doesn't blink. Her eyes hold mine, glossy with confusion, sadness, and something else—helplessness.
"Ki?" My voice is barely above a whisper. "Say something..."
Her lips part slightly, and it's like something finally snaps inside her. She blinks rapidly, coming back to her senses. Without a word, she rushes toward me and wraps her arms around me so tightly that I gasp. Her arms lock around my shoulders, squeezing with desperate, trembling strength.
"Oh my God, Al..." she chokes out, her voice broken with emotion. "W-why didn't you tell me before?" Her voice cracks at the end, thick with guilt and disbelief.
I open my mouth, but the words catch in my throat. My eyes sting as she holds me. I slowly wrap my arms around her, but she's holding on so tightly it feels like she's afraid I'll vanish.
She buries her face in the crook of my neck, her breath warm and shaky against my skin. Her fingers dig into my back as though she's trying to hold me together—to keep me from falling apart.
She's trembling. Or is it me?
Her arms tighten further, and I swear, if she doesn't let go soon, I'm going to suffocate. What a way to die, right? Smothered by love.
But I let her hold me anyway. Because for the first time in years, I don't feel alone.
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