Chasing What's Lost || Kinich x F!Reader ||

<The time flies>

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The sun was high in the sky, casting long shadows over the playground. Y/N and Kinich, both barely eight years old, sat side by side on the swings, their feet scuffing the ground as they shared a bag of candy. Kinich nudged her with his elbow, grinning as he offered her the last piece. "You take it. You always save me the best ones," she teased, but her heart warmed at the small gesture. It had always been like this between them easy, effortless. Best friends who needed no words to understand each other. Back then, they had made a silent promise: nothing would ever come between them.

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As the sun began to set, casting long shadows across the pavement, Y/N stood at the school gate, nervously twisting her bracelet around her wrist. Maybe today, if they walked together, she could finally bring up the way things had changed between them over the past few months. She glanced around, watching as students passed her, their laughter fading with the daylight. The air cooled as the last rays disappeared, and with them, her hope. Kinich still hadn't shown. The ache in her chest deepened. She bit her lip, trying to swallow the lump forming in her throat, but the bitterness lingered. Was ten years of friendship really nothing to him? Why was she even clinging to this faint thread of hope? She couldn’t blame Mualani—it wasn’t her fault. Anyone could be drawn to her vibrant, carefree spirit. But it didn’t stop Y/N’s heart from breaking a little more.

She took a few small steps, the weight of the night pressing in as dark clouds gathered above. The first drops of rain fell on her face, mingling with the unshed tears in her eyes. Her lips trembled, marked with the signs of her frustration. Standing on the bridge overlooking the city's fading lights, she whispered into the approaching storm, "What happened to us?" Her voice was barely a breath in the wind, swallowed by the growing rumble of thunder.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket. She didn’t need to look to know who it was. 'Kinich.' The name glowed on her screen, mocking her. Why was he calling now? Slowly, she answered.

"I heard you’re not home yet. Your parents are worried." His voice was soft, familiar, yet distant. She bit her lip harder, fighting the rising tide of emotions.

"I’m on my way. Tell them not to worry." The words were robotic, detached, as if she could keep herself from crumbling if she just held back a little longer.

"Ah, I walked with Mualani today. I forgot to text you... sorry." His voice cut through her like a knife. Her heart clenched, but she forced herself to speak.

"I'm hanging up," she whispered, her hand shaking as she ended the call.

Suddenly, Y/N broke into a run, her feet splashing through puddles as the rain fell harder, each droplet like a tear the sky was shedding for her. Her chest tightened, her breath coming out in ragged gasps as her vision blurred with tears. "I hate you," she whispered, her voice swallowed by the storm. "I hate you," she repeated, louder this time, her heart screaming what her voice could barely say. But even as the words left her lips, a deeper, quieter truth settled in her chest—it wasn’t him she hated. It was this distance, this unbearable silence between them.

Y/N breathed deeply as she arrived at her apartment, the weight of the world pressing down on her. She fumbled with her bear keychain, her hands trembling as she unlocked the door. As soon as she stepped inside, her parents’ worried faces greeted her. She didn’t have to say a word; the tears she’d fought so hard to contain finally spilled over, and she fell apart in front of them.

Her mother rushed forward, wrapping her arms around Y/N as if she could shield her from the pain. “Why did it all have to change?!” Y/N cried into her shoulder, her voice thick with heartbreak. Her parents instinctively rubbed her back in slow, circular motions, a comforting gesture that had soothed her countless times before.

“Shh, sweetheart, it’s okay,” her mother murmured softly, holding her tighter. “People change as they grow up, just like the human body. Nothing ever stays the same.” The words felt like a bittersweet truth, a reminder that growth often came with loss.

Y/N pulled back slightly, her face streaked with tears. “But why does it hurt so much?” She searched her mother’s eyes for answers, wanting to understand why the changes felt like they were ripping her heart in two.

Her mother gently cupped Y/N’s face, wiping away her tears with her thumb. “Because change means letting go of what was. It’s okay to feel lost right now. Just remember, it’s also a chance for new beginnings.” Y/N wanted to believe her, but the thought of moving forward felt daunting. In that moment, all she could do was cry, her heart heavy with the weight of everything she was losing.