Chapter Text
— RUMIS POV —
Her eyes, the ones I've missed for an eternity.
They're here, and they're looking straight at me.
Mira was sobbing.
Mira never cries.
"Please.."
"Please don't do it."
She clutched my hand like a lifeline, pulling me close into a hug.
A hug I very much needed.
I tried to explain myself, but I couldn't form the words.
"Mira.. I.."
I choked, weeping into her shoulder. All the memories came flooding back.
However, they weren't the bad ones this time.
This time, they were filled with love.
The night she cradled me at my lowest, her patience.
Her love.
I can't believe I was so stupid.
Yet the urge was still there, at the back of my mind.
Zoey was still there.
Mira hushed me, letting the silence comfort us.
"Save your words."
I thought for a moment, wanting to say everything but noting at the same time.
All I could manage was a whisper.
"I'm sorry."
Sorry doesn't fix what I was just about to do, but it's a start.
"Don't apologise Rumi."
"You're safe now."
Hearing those words broke something inside of me. The good kind of shatter.
She came all this way. For me.
Thats a debt I don't think I'll ever be able to repay.
"I didn't think you'd come."
I can't believe I doubted her.
But what about Zoey?
"I'll always come."
Mira paused for a moment, then pulled away from our embrace and looked at me. She still held my arms as if she was going to lose me again, her grip firm and grounding.
"What matters is what would've happened if.."
Her eyes started to brim with tears for a second time, she didn't even bother to wipe them away. Just let her emotions pour out, every tear showing how much love is in her heart.
"-if I was too late."
Perhaps it was fate that Mira had made her
sudden appearance.
But my destiny? That lies beyond the bridge.
All the way down.
"You don't have to do this alone. Not anymore."
Her fingers traced lazy circles over the back of my hand, I let out a hefty sigh of relief, my pain slowly ebbing away. I still wouldn't have regretted my choice, but I'm glad that there's another way out.
While staring into her beautiful deep brown eyes, I nodded, letting her guide me away from the railing. As we stood there peering out into the fog, I realised that destiny could wait a little longer, so long as Mira's hand stayed in mine.
The rain consumed us as one, two girls huddled beneath the shattered sky.
I didn't push Mira away, not this time.
"I can't lose you."
Mira held me tighter every time my breath hitched or hiccuped. I couldn't help but tell her the things I couldn't even tell myself, it's as if her touch was hypnotising.
"I was afraid of losing myself."
My words faltered, yet were as clear as day. Mira didn't rush to smother me with words or gifts or chocolates, she just stood with me.
Warm and gentle.
When I pulled back to truly look at her, I noticed the anxious shimmer in her eyes and the way her lips trembled ever so slightly. Not from the cold, but from fear. Fear of losing me, and somehow, knowing that she was afraid because she cared made my heart ache more than the emptiness ever had.
I breathed in Mira's scent, her hair radiating with an aromatic cherry fragrance that probably is sourced from her conditioner that I love, but I'd never tell her that I use it sometimes.
I halted for a moment, looking up at her as my hand rested on her elbow, I brushed it lethargically. Mira hummed at the sensation.
"Mira. Can I ask you a question?"
"Yes, of course. Anything you want, Ru."
Her eyes flickered open to gaze into mine.
Hearing that nickname made my heart skip a beat, I wasn't sure whether I enjoyed it or not. Her eagerness caught me off guard, seeing Mira like this, it feels wrong.
"Why did you come?"
My voice was weak and edged with sorrow. Not because of Mira making me cry grateful tears,
but from guilt.
I'm guilty because I had just tried to leave forever. Leave this girl who cradled me in her arms; alone.
Leave Zoey, who I had abandoned.
Her last memory of me would've been her greatest injury. I'm guilty because I've put Mira through all of this.
She had to save me.
Save me from myself.
To think that whenever she looks at me, this is the moment that might play in her mind. I'm guilty for making myself look weak.
Like I'm someone to be saved and looked after.
I'm just like Jinu, a coward.
Are you still watching, Jinu?
In this life, I'll never get to see you again.
But in another, that bridge would've been the last thing I touched. To be with you.
I repeated my question as Mira still gazed into my eyes, her face comforting. It's beautiful.
"Why? After everything I've put you through.. Why are you still here?"
Even though my voice was cracked with misery, it was still genuine.
Who would put themselves through this for me?
Mira cleared her throat.
Her expression softened as she sighed. It was a wet, broken sound that still managed to carry warmth.
"Because I love you, Rumi."
My heart raced.
Mira loves me.
Mira loves me.
Out of all people, why me?
Then Mira spoke again.
"..And love doesn't disappear because it hurts sometimes."
The dam inside of me broke all over again. I clung to Mira once more, burying my face against her shoulder. For once, I didn't care if I looked weak. Maybe weakness wasn't something to be ashamed of. Not if it meant I could lean on her, just as she leaned on me.
The rain still showed no mercy, thundering through the broken clouds, yet nothing could get as broken as we were right now.
Mira's thumb brushed across my cheek, though it was impossible to tell whether she was wiping away the rain or remnants of my grief.
The cold didn't matter anymore, the only thing that mattered being her hand in mine, which was warm even when the cold pushed on.
It reminded me that I was still here, that she was still here.
That we were here, together.
— MIRA'S POV —
Rumi was frail beneath my arms.
She was almost limp. It hurt me in a melancholic sense of pain, I'd do anything to protect her.
Yet part of me still feels guilty.
I left Zoey alone with Celine.
Earlier, I had received a call informing me about how her condition has landed her in the hospital, and I never showed even up to comfort her.
Rumi was shaking, I couldn't tell whether it was from the cold, or the sequence of events I had to protect her from.
"Mira?"
Her voice was honest and warm. A little shaky still, but it still made my stomach leap with butterflies. I hummed in response, my eyes closed and too tired to open. I'd completely forgotten that I haven't had over 3 hours sleep in almost a day, Rumi probably the same.
"Thank you."
Her grateful tone took a chokehold on me, I'd never seen her this way since the Takedown Incident.
But what was she thanking me for?
Following her and abandoning Zoey who was which in critical condition?
"Thank you for what?"
I asked genuinely, Rumi peered up at me and let out a minor but real smile.
"For saving me."
Oh, right.
I tried not to think about that.
Seeing her next to that railing, ready to quit and escape it all.. it made me shiver.
Thinking back to it made my words come out short and wobbly.
"Yeah.. Yeah.. anytime."
I recovered quickly and gripped Rumi tighter, if I let her go, I might lose her again.
I can't lose her.
"I love you.. Rumi."
Rumi paused for a moment, her brows furrowing as she blinked firmly.
My mind went into a panic.
Does she not like me back? Why would I assume that? I let my stupid mouth slip again, I feel humiliated.
Then,
"I love you too."
My eyes allayed. The rain still raged on above us, but I barely felt it. Her words repeated in my head like a song.
'I love you too.'
For so long I'd prayed to hear them, in dreams, in nightmares, while I was cooking. Now that they're here, I could barely breathe.
I don't want anything bad to happen to her again.
"Rumi.. Just know that I'm always here. Even when you think I'm not."
I let out hoarsely, and Rumi didn't answer with words. Not right away. Instead, she leaned into my touch, closing her eyes like she finally felt safe. My heart stuttered at the closeness between us. The closeness I've wanted for a long time.
Before I could even think, Rumi performed the unpredictable.
She lowered my chin, and pressed a featherlight kiss to my temple.
It wasn't desperate or rushed, just gentle and impossibly unforgettable.
Rumi's cheek flushed as she realised what she had just done. Her eyes screamed 'what the hell am I doing?!'
She stuttered, embarrassment creeping over her face.
"I.. can't believe I just did that."
to be honest, I couldn't believe it either.
Before I could stop it, my lips tugged into a smile.
And right then, I made a silent vow: no matter what happens with Zoey, with Celine, or even the chaos expecting us outside of this storm, I will not let Rumi slip away again.
Then a name caught my attention.
Zoey.
I was so lost in my quest for Rumi, she never even crossed my mind.
Should I tell Rumi?..
She deserves to know at the very minimum.
"Rumi.."
Her smile died away almost instantly at the audition of my tone, she knew something was up.
"What's wrong? Did I do something?"
"Mira I-"
Before Rumi could start spiralling, I cut her off.
"It's Zoey."
I watched as the colour drained from Rumi's face. She pulled away, letting my hand, previously warm from her touch, now go cold without it.I gulped down my regret, even despite Rumi's visible anxiety.
She can't avoid it forever.
"She's in the hospital.."
Rumi frowned, tears welling in the corners of her eyes, her lip trembling slightly.
She slunk down to the pavement, her back leaning against the railing she's made so many memories with.
Her head rested on her knees as she crossed her arms over that pretty face of hers.
She repeatedly muttered under her breath, certain phrases like 'I'm sorry' and 'I can't go back' sticking out like a sore thumb.
My heart is telling me to drop the topic and rush to Rumi's side, but my gut is forcing me to carry on.
Always trust your gut.
I ended up doing a mix of both,
I'll let her down gently.
I sat down beside her, tracing comforting circles down her back. Her body trembled beneath my hand, which made a gnawing guilt claw at my throat.
"Rumi.." I whispered, leaning close so my voice wouldn't drown in the rain, or in her overwhelming thoughts. "Zoey will be okay. Everything is going to be alright."
I wanted to tell her that none of this was her fault, but it was.
She attacked me, and Zoey both.
But that's a conversation we're not ready for just yet.
So instead, I slid my arm around her shoulders and pulled her against me. She resisted at first, then melted into my hug like she had needed permission to collapse.
"I didn't mean to.." Rumi choked, her words barely forming under the weight of the burden she carries.
Will Zoey even want to face her?
"I attacked you.." her cries shattered me in a way I didn't think was possible, "I hurt Zoey.."
She mumbled more apologies and wept into my shoulder, her grip was firm on my hoodie. Which was still torn from her previous outburst.
I didn't care.
"Listen to me, Ru."
Rumi halted to look at me, her eyes still welled to the brim with tears, new and old.
"Everything will be okay. As long as I'm here by your side, everything will be okay."
She murmured the quietest agreement, her hands in mine, the steadying slowness of breathing calming my spiked nerves.
And my promise that might not live up to its name.
Everything will be okay, it has to be.
I gradually lifted Rumi to her feet, her breath mingling with mine as she leaned on me for footing. She was still trembling, but it was progressively dying down at the reassurance of my presence.
"Come on, Rumi."
"Let's go home."