"I don't... I don't know what to do," she sobbed into my chest, her words barely audible between her gasps for air. Her pain, raw and palpable, cut through me like a knife. I wanted to say something, to give her the comfort she desperately needed, but the right words seemed to evade me.
So, I just held her tighter, pressing her trembling body closer to mine, trying to offer what little solace I could in my embrace. I could feel her heartbeat against my chest, fast and uneven, matching the frantic rhythm of her breathing. It hurt to see her like this—so vulnerable, so broken. And the worst part was that I couldn't take her pain away.
"I'm here, Y/N," I whispered softly, my voice hoarse with emotion. "I'm not going anywhere. We'll get through this, I promise."
She didn't respond, just clung to me like I was the only thing keeping her grounded. I could feel her tears soaking through my shirt, each drop like a hot iron branding my skin. It was unbearable, this helplessness, this inability to fix things for her.
I knew I shouldn't have let things get this far. I should've kept my distance, should've stayed professional. But how could I when every fiber of my being wanted to protect her, to make her smile again?
But now... now I had no choice but to face the consequences of my actions, no matter how much they tore me apart.
"It's going to be okay," I murmured, more to convince myself than her. "We'll figure it out. You're not alone in this."
Her sobs eventually quieted, but she still didn't let go. Neither did I. We stayed like that for what felt like hours, just holding onto each other in the silence, both afraid to let go, afraid of what would happen when we did.
In that moment, I knew one thing for sure: no matter how much it hurt, no matter how complicated things got, I wasn't going to let her go. I'd be there for her, through the worst of it, because that's what she needed. That's what I needed too.
I couldn't change the past, but I could be there for her now. And maybe, just maybe, that would be enough.
