𝑪𝒖𝒐𝒓𝒐 𝑴𝒊𝒐: 𝑴𝒚 𝑯𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫-10

                 Author's P. O. V

The male protagonist’s car—a sleek, black sports sedan—sat idling under the dim, flickering street lamp in front of the female protagonist’s dorm. Its engine hummed low, almost drowned out by the steady drumming of rain against the roof. The rain fell in heavy sheets, turning the world outside into a blur of shadows and reflections. Water streamed down the windows, distorting the view, but he could still see the faint outlines of the towering dorm building and the entrance she was about to disappear into.

Inside the car, the air was thick, stifling with tension and unsaid words. His hands gripped the steering wheel tightly, knuckles white, veins standing out against his skin as if holding on to the leather would somehow hold on to her. His breathing was slow, deliberate, as though he was bracing himself for the inevitable. His heart was a lead weight in his chest, heavy with the realization that she no longer believed he was the right guy for her. The unspoken truth between them hung like a storm cloud inside the car, mirroring the tempest outside.

She sat still for a moment longer, her fingers resting lightly on the door handle, her head slightly turned toward him but not enough to meet his eyes. Her breath fogged the window near her, creating a small, hazy patch that blurred the already misty night outside. Her reflection in the window was dim, fragile, as if she were a ghost about to vanish.

When she finally moved, it was as if time itself slowed. Her hand trembled slightly as she pushed open the door, letting in a rush of cold air and the sound of the rain crashing onto the pavement. She hesitated before stepping out, lingering in the threshold of the car as though she wanted to say something—anything—but no words came. The tension between them thickened, suffocating in its silence.

The sound of the door closing behind her was louder than any thunderclap, resonating through him like a final, irreversible decision. He watched as she stepped out into the deluge, her figure quickly becoming soaked. The rain plastered her hair to her face and shoulders, her clothes clinging to her like a second skin, but she moved with purpose toward the dorm, not once looking back. The faint glow of the dorm’s lights shimmered in the rain, illuminating her only in flashes, making her look almost like a fading silhouette.

He sat there, unmoving, staring after her as she disappeared into the distance. The windshield wipers moved back and forth, the rhythmic swish doing little to clear the storm or the turmoil in his mind. Water streamed down the glass, distorting his view, but it didn’t matter—she was gone, and with her, the faint hope he’d had that she might see him differently.

As she disappeared into the dorm, swallowed by the warm glow of the entrance, he exhaled a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. His eyes lingered on the spot where she had vanished, hoping for one last glance, one final look that might tell him she had changed her mind. But the door remained closed, and the storm raged on.

He blinked, wiping a hand across his face as if to clear away the weight of the moment, though it clung to him like the rain clung to the windows. Slowly, with a heavy heart, he shifted in his seat and reached for the ignition. His fingers trembled slightly as he twisted the key, the engine roaring to life with a low, mechanical growl that seemed to echo the ache in his chest.

The car’s headlights flickered on, cutting through the rain, illuminating the empty street ahead. He glanced at the dorm once more, a silent goodbye hanging in the air before he shifted the gear into drive. The tires crunched over the wet gravel, the slick pavement glistening beneath them.

As he drove away, the windshield wipers kept their steady rhythm, pushing away the relentless rain, but nothing could push away the flood of emotions washing over him. His hands gripped the steering wheel tighter, his knuckles pale, as he maneuvered through the empty, rain-soaked streets. The city lights blurred into streaks of white and yellow, distorted by the water on the windows, mirroring his clouded thoughts.