Chapter 10: Rooftop Confessions
526 Words
“The people who ruin us are rarely villains. They’re just the ones brave enough to walk into our hearts without wiping their feet first.”
– Katienne
Scene 1: 7:59 PM
The rooftop was quiet.
Katienne stood near the railing, sketchbook in one hand, hair ruffled by the wind. The lights from the city below blinked like distant hope.
He was soaked.
But he waited.
One minute to go.
“She won’t come,” he muttered.
“Or maybe… she will.”
SCENE 2: 8:01 PM
Footsteps.
He turned.
Liora.
Hair damp from the drizzle, hoodie thrown over her gala dress, sneakers half-tied. She looked like a contradiction wrapped in stubbornness and stormlight.
“You’re late,” he whispered.
“You’re wet,” she said.
“I waited.”
“I saw.”
She walked slowly toward him.
“I thought…”
“You thought I chose Cherry.”
“I saw you kiss her.”
“And you didn’t wait to hear me say goodbye.”
That made her flinch.
He reached into his jacket and pulled out the letter from his mother, already creased and stained from rereads and quiet tears.
“This… changed me.”
“What is it?”
“A reminder that I’ve been silent too long.”
SCENE 3: The Confession
“Liora,” he said quietly, “I like you.”
She crossed her arms.
“Not because you’re smart. Not because you’re hot—though, holy hell, yes—but because when I’m with you, I feel like I’m enough, even when I’m not.”
He stepped closer.
“You terrify me. You challenge me. You make me want to grow. And I want… you.”
“Even after I ignored you? After I left?”
“Especially after that. Because I’d do the same thing if I thought I was about to be hurt again.”
Silence.
Then:
“Say it again.”
“What?”
“That you want me.”
He looked her straight in the eyes.
“I want you.”
She blinked. Swallowed.
“Then shut up-”
-and kissed him.
SCENE 4: The Kiss That Didn’t Apologize
This kiss was not polite.
It wasn’t careful.
It wasn’t silent.
It was messy, rain-drenched, breathless.
It was the kind of kiss that didn’t apologize for arriving late.
SCENE 5: But Not All Happy Endings
After the kiss, they sat near the rooftop stairs, legs stretched out, hands barely touching.
“What now?” she asked.
“Now I ask if you’ll be my mistake. For as long as we can handle it.”
“You mean girlfriend?”
“That too.”
She chuckled.
“You’re lucky I like storms.”
Suddenly, a new message popped on Katienne’s phone.
From Yuna.
Yuna [8:17 PM]:
Hey. I need to tell you something about your mom. About Madame Celestine. It’s… big. I found a letter in the archives. She wasn’t just your mother’s rival. She might be…
Message cut off.
“…might be what?”
But Liora was already leaning on his shoulder, closing her eyes.
And for now…
He let the next storm wait.
- Writer
