CHAPTER TWO:BROKEN CAMERA,NEW FACE
1005 Words
The next morning came with soft rain and gray clouds.
Ella sat on her bed, staring at her camera on the table. It was still dead.
She sighed and grabbed her phone.
“Good morning, ma’am,” she said when the repair shop picked up.
“My camera stopped working. Can you send someone to check it, please?”
The woman on the other end replied,
“Yes, ma. We’ll send a technician before noon. His name is Jayden.”
“Okay, thank you,” Ella said.
After the call, she cleaned her studio a bit. Tina was busy that morning, so she worked alone.
She set up her laptop, wiped the couch, and adjusted the lights.
Her heart felt heavy for no reason. She told herself it was just stress — but maybe it was something deeper. Maybe she was simply tired of pretending every day.
Around 11:30, she heard a knock on her door.
“Who is it?” she asked.
“Camera repair,” a calm voice replied.
She opened the door.
The guy standing there wasn’t what she expected.
He looked about twenty-five, tall, dressed in a black hoodie and jeans. His smile was small but kind. He carried a small toolkit and a bag slung over his shoulder.
“Good morning,” he said softly. “I’m Jayden. You called about a broken camera?”
“Yes, come in,” Ella said, stepping aside.
He walked in quietly, glancing around the studio.
“Nice space,” he said. “You make videos here?”
“Yeah,” she replied, switching on the lights.
“I run a small love talk show online. I’m the Love Coach.”
Jayden raised a brow.
“Love Coach? You teach people how to love?”
Ella smiled proudly.
“Exactly. I give tips about dating, heartbreak, and real relationships.”
He chuckled under his breath.
Ella noticed. “What’s funny?”
He looked up, still smiling.
“Nothing. I just didn’t know love had a teacher.”
She folded her arms. “Of course it does. Everyone needs help understanding love. It’s not just feelings — it’s a process.”
Jayden crouched beside the camera, opening it carefully.
“Hmm. I always thought love is something you feel, not something someone explains to you.”
Ella frowned. “That’s what people think, but love needs sense. That’s why many get hurt — they don’t learn before they fall.”
He laughed softly. “Maybe. But if you think too much, you might miss the real thing.”
She didn’t reply. She just stared at him as he worked. His fingers were steady. His face calm. No rush. No noise.
He didn’t act like most guys who came around her — no fake smiles or smooth talk. Just quiet confidence.
After a few minutes, he said,
“It’s just a loose wire. The power connection came off. I’ll fix it now.”
“Thank you,” Ella said.
While he worked, she tried to check her phone, but her eyes kept drifting back to him. He looked focused — like he truly cared about what he was doing.
“So,” Jayden said without looking up, “why did you decide to become a Love Coach?”
Ella smiled faintly. “I used to believe in love a lot. Then something happened. I got tired of seeing people get hurt, so I decided to help others learn before they make the same mistakes.”
Jayden nodded. “You must have been hurt.”
She froze for a moment. “Why do you say that?”
He looked up for the first time, his eyes meeting hers.
“People who talk too much about love usually don’t believe in it anymore.”
Ella blinked. “That’s not true.”
He smiled again, a small, knowing smile.
“Maybe not. But it feels true.”
She didn’t know what to say. For a moment, it felt like he could see right through her — all her fake smiles and perfect advice.
When he finished fixing the camera, he stood up and tested it. The red light blinked back to life.
“It’s working now,” he said.
“Wow,” Ella said, surprised. “That was fast. Thank you.”
He packed his tools slowly. “You’re welcome.”
She wanted to ask more questions, but her pride held her back.
Just before leaving, he looked around the studio one more time and said,
“You have a nice space. But maybe you should let yourself feel love, not just talk about it.”
Ella tilted her head. “Excuse me?”
He smiled softly. “Nothing. Just advice from a camera guy.”
And then he left.
Ella stood there, staring at the door after it closed.
No one had ever spoken to her like that.
She didn’t know whether to feel annoyed or curious.
She sat on her chair, looking at the camera that was now working again.
His words echoed in her head:
“Maybe you should let yourself feel love, not just talk about it.”
She shook her head and laughed to herself.
“What does he even know about love?”
Still, she couldn’t stop thinking about his calm eyes and quiet smile.
That night, she tried to film a short thank-you video for her followers, but she couldn’t focus. Her lines kept breaking. She kept remembering Jayden’s words.
After her fifth take, she gave up and sat on the floor, hugging her knees.
“Why can’t I stop thinking about that stranger?” she whispered.
The rain started again outside, soft and slow. She looked out the window and sighed.
Somewhere across the city, Jayden sat in his small room editing photos on his laptop. For some reason, he too couldn’t stop thinking about the Love Coach with tired eyes and a fake smile.
Maybe, without knowing it, both of them had just started a story neither of them planned.
- Writer
