AFL Story | Nick Daicos

48

Nick: Can we meet at the cafe, we got to talk.

Madison: yeah sure, all g??

Nick: Just meet me at the cafe near your house.

-

I pulled up to the cafe. The soft hum of the café's ambiance seemed louder than ever, a cruel contrast to the muted turmoil swirling within me. Nick and I sat at our usual corner table, but the familiarity of the place only served to accentuate the gaping chasm that had opened up between us. My latte sat untouched, a small monument to the fact that even the routine had been disrupted.

Nick's gaze was intense, his eyes searching my face as he began to speak. His words were a sentence to a fate I had been dreading, a fate that seemed inevitable yet entirely unfathomable. My fingers tightened around the cup as my heart raced, each beat echoing my growing unease.

"Madison," he said gently, and the sound of my name on his lips sent a tremor through me. "We need to talk."

I nodded, my throat tight and my voice trapped by the weight of what I sensed was coming.

"I've been doing some thinking," Nick continued, his voice steady but laced with sadness. 

His words hung in the air, heavy and undeniable. The truth in them cut through me, a bittersweet acknowledgment of the growing gap between us.

"We've shared some amazing moments," Nick went on, his eyes holding mine in a way that felt both comforting and heartrending. "I can't tell you but- look we need to break up"

Tears welled up, blurring my vision, and I took a shaky breath. I had known this was coming, had felt the subtle shifts in our interactions, but hearing it spoken aloud made the pain excruciatingly real.

The lump in my throat threatened to strangle me, and I fought to keep my composure. Why was he doing this?

"Nick," I began, my voice trembling, "Why?"

He looked at me, his gaze filled with a depth of understanding that mirrored my own pain. "I really wish I could tell you, really. One day- I promise I'll tell you."

A heavy silence fell between us, a silence that held all the words we couldn't find. The café, once a haven for laughter and shared secrets, was now a witness to our heartbreak.

"Did I do anything wrong?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper, desperation tinging my words.

Nick nodded, a sad smile touching his lips. "No, of course not. I love you, Mads, no matter what."

A tear slipped down my cheek, and I wiped it away angrily. "I love you, too. B-but I'll miss you, Nick."

He reached across the table, his fingers brushing mine briefly. "I'll miss you too, Madison. You'll always mean something to me."

As the finality of our breakup hung heavy in the air, we shared one last, lingering look, our eyes conveying what words couldn't express — a mixture of love, longing, and the heart-wrenching acceptance that our story had reached its end.

The café felt colder as we rose from our seats, a sense of finality settling over us. Our embrace was a lifeline, a connection that still felt unbreakable despite our decision. With a heavy heart, I pulled away, my gaze locked on his for a moment longer, and then we turned away from each other.

Walking out of the café, our steps taking us in separate directions, I felt a piece of my heart remain behind in that corner table. It was a goodbye, but it was also the beginning of a new, uncertain chapter.

-

hey guys

i wrote this ch on the 25th of august and i forgot to write the a/n. its the 25th rn but all the other ones that i published in one go (idk when) will also be written today / tmrw. im not publishing these til the 27-28th of august. 

hag1