"Never Let Go, But Here I Am"
673 Words
KIA'S OFFICE - AFTERNOON
Kia sat at her desk, fingers flying across the keyboard. The soft click-clack of keys was the only sound in the quiet office. The sunlight slanted through the blinds, catching the dust in the air and making it glow like tiny stars.
KNOCK KNOCK
She froze. Her heart skipped a beat.
...Come in."
The door opened slowly. And there he was.
Mustekim.
Her breath caught. Her chest tightened. They froze - two familiar strangers staring across time, across pain. Memories of laughter, of arguments, of tears — all tangled and raw — danced behind her eyes.
She forced herself to speak first.
"Hi... What's up? Why are you here?"
He stepped inside, calm, composed, almost impossibly so.
"I'm here as the project defender."
Her lips twitched into a small, sarcastic laugh.
"A CEO? Project defender? Please. Hit me with another lie."
"I'm not lying," he said softly, voice steady.
"This is real. I came to make a negotiation... with you."
She sighed, motioning toward the chair.
"Fine. Sit."
The discussion began — cold, precise, protessional. Documents shuffled, pens scratched, no eye contact. Each second stretched like a tightrope between them.
When it ended, he stood. Hesitated.
"Can you walk with me?"
She raised a brow.
"Is that part of the business, too?"
"If that makes it easier for you," he said, a faint, almost guilty smile tugging at his lips.
They walked along the company grounds, slow, almost casual. But Kia's mind was a storm. Memories clashed with present reality.
Every step reminded her of everything she had lost... everything she had tried to hide.
Then he spoke, softly.
"I'm sorry... for the way I behaved."
Kia hummed, not meeting his gaze.
"Hmm mm."
Her eyes burned. Lips pressed tight.
He stopped. She stopped.
"Kia... I miss you."
Kia's chest tightened as he said, "I miss you."
Her mind screamed. She knew she was the reason they broke. All the walls she had built, all the fears she hadn't shared... it had pushed him away. And now, standing here, seeing him again, she felt the weight of every wrong choice she had made.
Tears threatened, jagged and sharp. She swallowed them like glass. She couldn't let him see the mess inside her, couldn't let him carry the pain of her broken pieces. She wanted him to remember her as strong, not fragile.
And yet, a part of her ached to reach out, to hold him, to beg him to stay. But she couldn't trust herselt to be enough, couldn't risk him suffering for the rest of his life because of her.
Her lips tightened. Her hands trembled. She shook her head.
Her chest tightened. A storm of memories - of love, of heartbreak, of comfort and betrayal - hit her all at once.
She turned, running. Fast. Away. So he wouldn't see her crumble.
KIA'S OFFICE - MINUTES LATER
Kia shuts the door behind her, pressing her back against it. Her hands cover her mouth as if she could stop the sobs from escaping.
The tears finally come — silent, jagged, uncontrollable. They roll down her cheeks, tracing the path of every moment she'd failed, every wall she'd built, every choice that had pushed him away.
Her chest feels tight, almost like it could break.
She had loved him too much to stay, and yet... not enough to let him in fully. The weight of her own decisions crushes her.
TEXT MESSAGF POP-UP• MUSTEKIM
I'll wait for you.
Whenever you're ready... I'm here.
She stares at it, frozen, her fingers trembling over her phone. Her heart aches - the message should bring comfort, but it only magnities the pain.
She cries harder now. Sobs shaking her body.
Not just sadness... but guilt. Not just heartbreak... but regret.
I can't let him suffer because of me, she thinks.
I can't hold him, even it I want to. I can't be enough for him.
And still, somewhere deep inside, a tiny, stubborn part of her whispers...
I wish I could.
- Writer
