Title: Between Two Worlds

The Future Ahead

Chy’s POV

I should have seen the signs earlier. All the canceled plans, the vague excuses, the way Darius started pulling away. But when you’re in it, you don’t always want to admit what’s staring you in the face.

I found out through Instagram, of all places. Some girl posted a picture of them together—her in his jersey, all cozy after one of his games. The caption said everything: “Bae killed it today. Proud of you, love.” The comments were full of heart emojis and congratulations, but all I could see was red.

I sat there staring at my phone, my heart pounding in my chest, feeling like the world was caving in. I knew then that Darius hadn’t just been pulling away—he’d been seeing someone else the whole time. All that talk about being focused on his career? Lies. I felt stupid. How could I have fallen for him? How could I have believed him when he said I was different?

I wanted to scream. To cry. To break something. Instead, I called Mafia.

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Mafia’s POV

When I picked up the phone and heard Chy’s voice, I knew something was seriously wrong. She was crying, and Chy never cries. She tries to act tough all the time, like she can handle everything on her own, but tonight, she was broken.

“Come get me,” she said through sobs. “I don’t know what to do.”

I didn’t ask questions. I jumped on my bike and sped to her house, my heart racing. When I got there, she was sitting on the front steps, her face red, eyes puffy from crying. She looked lost, like everything she’d built up inside had finally come crashing down.

“What happened?” I asked, kneeling in front of her.

She held out her phone, showing me the picture of Darius with the other girl. “He’s been cheating on me, Mafia. All this time, he’s been lying to me.”

I didn’t know what to say. I’d never liked Darius, but I didn’t think he’d take it this far. I wanted to punch him for what he did to her, but that wasn’t what she needed right now. What she needed was someone to be there for her, to remind her she wasn’t alone.

“I’m so stupid,” she muttered, wiping her eyes angrily. “I should’ve listened to you. You told me he was shady.”

“Nah, Chy,” I said softly. “This isn’t on you. He’s the one who messed up, not you.”

She shook her head, clearly not believing me. “I just feel... broken.”

I didn’t know what to do, so I just sat beside her, wrapping my arm around her shoulders. She leaned into me, and for a while, we sat there in silence. I didn’t have the right words, but I figured just being there was enough.

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Chy’s POV

Mafia didn’t say much, but his presence was enough. Sitting there with him, the hurt didn’t go away, but it felt a little less heavy. I don’t know what I would’ve done if I’d been alone, trapped in my own head with all those thoughts swirling around.

“Thank you,” I whispered after a while.

“For what?” he asked, looking at me with those steady, patient eyes.

“For coming when I called,” I said, my voice cracking a little. “For being here.”

He just nodded, like it was nothing, but it meant everything to me.

“You don’t have to thank me for that, Chy,” he said quietly. “I’ll always be here for you.”

Something about the way he said it, so sure and solid, made me feel like maybe I wasn’t as broken as I thought. Maybe I’d get through this. Not today, not tomorrow—but eventually. And knowing Mafia had my back made it just a little easier to believe that.

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Mafia’s POV

Watching Chy go through this hurt me more than I thought it would. She didn’t deserve what Darius did to her, and the more I thought about it, the angrier I got. I wanted to confront him, make him understand the damage he caused, but I knew that wouldn’t solve anything.

Right now, Chy needed me to keep it together, to be her rock, and I wasn’t about to let her down. Not after everything she’s been through.