She had been a knot of tension since the early hours of the morning, her mind a whirlwind of anxiety and doubt. The future of their relationship loomed over her like a dark cloud, casting shadows on everything she did. No matter how hard she tried, the nagging feeling of uncertainty clung to her, refusing to let go. The smile she wore throughout the day was nothing but a fragile mask, barely holding together the turmoil brewing inside. Every laugh she forced, every casual conversation she had felt like she was walking on a thin layer of ice, beneath which an ocean of anxiety threatened to swallow her whole.

Her mind was trapped in a loop, a single relentless question circling over and over again: "What will he decide?" She feared his choice—would he walk away, or would he stay and fight for what they had? Each time the thought crossed her mind, it sent a fresh wave of fear coursing through her veins, gripping her heart with icy fingers. The idea of losing him, of everything coming to an abrupt and painful end, was unbearable. But even worse was the uncertainty, the not knowing what was to come.

The weight of these thoughts made her entire day feel like a blur. Nothing she did could pull her attention away from the growing pit of dread in her stomach. As the hours crawled by, the gnawing feeling only grew worse. She went through the motions—classes, meetings, conversations—all while feeling disconnected, as if she were living on autopilot. On the outside, she looked calm, even composed, but inside, she was spiraling.

Finally, the day drew to an end, but her anxiety did not. If anything, the sense of dread deepened. As she arrived home, the familiar comfort of her surroundings did little to ease the tension she carried. The weight on her shoulders felt even heavier now, like an invisible burden she couldn’t shake. She went through her usual routine of freshening up, changing into more comfortable clothes, but none of it felt normal. Everything she did was overshadowed by a singular focus—him. She couldn’t shake the thoughts that had plagued her all day.

As she finally sat down, her phone was burning a hole in her pocket. She knew she needed to check, to see if he had responded. But the very idea terrified her. What if his response shattered everything? What if there was no response at all? Her hands trembled as she reached for her phone, heart pounding with every second of hesitation. She could feel the blood rushing in her ears, her chest tightening as she unlocked the screen.

With a deep, shaky breath, she forced herself to open her messages. The sight that greeted her made her heart sink into the pit of her stomach. He had seen her message—but there was no reply. That single, empty space where his words should have been felt like a void, a gaping hole that consumed her with despair. Her mind raced with possibilities, each one worse than the last.

But it wasn’t just the unread message that broke her heart. As her thumb hovered over his profile, something else caught her eye. A new story. Curiosity and dread clashed within her as she tapped on it, half hoping it would offer some relief, but knowing it probably wouldn’t.

Her heart shattered into a million pieces the moment the story loaded. There he added the Snapchat bitmoji with another girl on his story with a romantic song .The image hit her like a punch to the gut, stealing the breath from her lungs.

The sharp pang of betrayal ripped through her, cutting deeper than she thought possible. The walls of her world seemed to close in as the image replayed in her mind, over and over again. Her hands, already shaky, trembled even more violently. She wanted to scream, to let out all the hurt, the confusion, the anger. But she couldn’t. Not here, not now. Her mother was just in the other room, and she couldn’t afford to let her see the cracks in her carefully maintained facade.

She tried to breathe, to hold herself together, but it felt impossible. Her emotions were a storm raging within her, and she was barely managing to hold on. Every nerve in her body was screaming at her to do something, to demand answers, to confront him. And yet, part of her hesitated, afraid of what the truth might be.

Her hands shook as she pulled up their conversation again. The words she had been dreading to send now felt inevitable. Her heart ached with each letter she typed, knowing she might be opening a door she wasn’t ready to walk through. But she needed to know. She needed to hear it from him, no matter how painful it might be.

With trembling fingers, she typed out the message. "Who is that girl?" The words stared back at her from the screen, a reflection of her heartache and fear. It took every ounce of courage she had to press send.

As the message went through, she sat back, her heart pounding painfully in her chest. The waiting began again, this time more excruciating than before. She braced herself for whatever was coming, knowing that whatever his answer was, it would change everything.

Ni Ying had always been the kind of girl who kept her heart guarded, hidden behind layers of smiles that never quite reached her eyes. She wasn’t one to share her deepest feelings with anyone, not even her closest friends—if she could call them that. She didn’t make friendships for her own sake. It wasn’t in her nature to be selfish. Instead, she forged bonds with pure intentions, hoping to bring some happiness to the lives of those around her, even when they didn’t reciprocate the same kindness.

But time changes everyone. Over the years, Ni Ying became a different person, someone who struggled to trust, someone who had learned to keep her emotions locked away. Her transformation hadn’t been by choice; it had been forced upon her by life’s harsh lessons. The betrayal, insults, and heartbreak she had endured from her first love had shaped her into someone she barely recognized. He had once been the most important person in her life, someone she had trusted without question. Yet, despite the pain he had caused her, despite the way he had broken her spirit, she hadn’t been able to let go. No one else had ever taken his place in her heart, no matter how much she wished they could.

Yet, little did she know, that one ordinary morning would bring something unexpected into her life. Something she hadn’t been looking for but would change her world nonetheless.

...****************...

NI YING'S POV :

It was a quiet Sunday morning, and I was finally able to indulge in the one thing that brought me peace—painting. Sundays were my escape, my chance to shut out the world and just be with myself. I had set everything up: my paints were lined up, brushes cleaned and ready, and my canvas stood waiting for the colors that would soon cover it. This was my routine, the one thing I could count on when everything else in my life felt uncertain.

Just as I dipped my brush into the paint, my phone buzzed on the table. Normally, I wouldn’t have paid it any mind. But for some reason, today felt different. I picked up my phone, almost out of habit, and there it was—a message from a name I didn’t recognize.

"Hey."

It was such a simple greeting, but it caught me off guard. I don’t know why, but I felt a strange urge to respond. Maybe it was curiosity. Maybe it was the fact that, despite how much I tried to push people away, a part of me still longed for connection. I typed back a quick, “Hi,” and put my phone down, trying to shake off whatever strange feeling had settled in my chest.

I turned back to my canvas, but it was no use. My thoughts kept drifting back to the message, wondering who this person was and why they had decided to reach out to me. A few minutes passed before my phone buzzed again.

“Ssup?”

A small smile tugged at my lips. It was such a casual, friendly response, and for some reason, it felt nice. I’d spent so long building walls around myself, convincing myself that I didn’t need anyone, that it was strange to feel this tiny spark of warmth from someone I didn’t even know.

I found myself responding again, and before I realized it, we were having a full conversation. We talked about the little things—what we liked, how we spent our days, our favorite music. It felt easy, natural, like I was talking to someone I’d known for years. But no matter how much I tried to relax, I couldn’t completely let my guard down.

I kept reminding myself of the promises I had made to myself after everything that had happened with my first love. He had shattered me in ways I never thought possible, and since then, I’d sworn that I would never let anyone else in. The pain he’d caused was a constant reminder of why I needed to be careful, why I couldn’t let myself be vulnerable again.

But as I chatted with this stranger, I felt something I hadn’t felt in a long time—hope. It scared me. It was as if a tiny crack was forming in the walls I had spent so long building around my heart. I didn’t want to admit it, but part of me liked talking to him. Part of me wanted to keep the conversation going, to see where it might lead.

But I knew better than to let myself get carried away. I couldn’t let anyone else take the place of the person I’d lost. I wasn’t ready to let go of that part of my heart, no matter how much I wished I could. So, I kept my responses light, casual, and made sure not to share too much. I couldn’t afford to make the same mistakes again.

As the conversation went on, I glanced over at my canvas. It was still blank, untouched. It was funny, in a way. I had sat down that morning with every intention of painting something beautiful, but instead, I ended up painting words with a stranger.

And yet, even as I sat there, talking to him, I knew that the most important part of me was still locked away, hidden behind the walls I’d built. I wasn’t sure if I would ever be ready to tear them down. But maybe, just maybe, this conversation was the first step toward finding out.

For now, I would keep my heart guarded. I would keep my distance. But deep down, a tiny spark of hope flickered, and I couldn’t help but wonder—could this be the beginning of something new?

To be continued

Ni Ying’s POV:

After that first conversation, I didn’t think much of it. The message that came from the guy who texted me was my senior Kaiwen, but it turned out he was introducing me to his best friend, Zeipher. I didn’t expect much, but out of curiosity, I accepted Zeipher’s friend request. As soon as I saw his profile picture, I felt a strange sense of familiarity. He looked so much like a classmate of mine, and after a bit of small talk, I found out why—he was actually my classmate’s cousin.

It was funny how things worked out like that, and it made the conversation flow easier than I thought it would. There was something comfortable about talking to Zeipher, even though I had promised myself I wouldn’t get too close to anyone new, especially a guy. But we had this connection—something small but significant. We both loved poetry.

That caught me off guard. Poetry had always been my thing, my little escape from the world. I never really shared that part of myself with anyone, especially after everything that happened with my first love. But Zeipher wasn’t like the others. When he spoke about poetry, I could tell it wasn’t just small talk. He understood it, the way I did. Our conversations about poems and words felt deeper than the usual surface-level chats I had with most people.

But still, I was careful. The past had left me wounded, and no matter how easy things felt with Zeipher, I couldn’t fully trust it. I had been down this road before. With my first love, I gave everything, and when he left, he took parts of me with him. I didn’t want to go through that again.

So even though I liked talking to Zeipher, even though our shared love for poetry made me feel connected to him in a way I hadn’t expected, I kept my guard up. I wasn’t going to let anyone get too close. I couldn’t risk it.

Yet, something about our conversations pulled me in. I caught myself looking forward to his messages, waiting for the next time we would talk about a poem we both liked or a line that resonated with us. But every time I felt that flicker of excitement, I pushed it down, reminding myself that I had to protect my heart.

Zeipher’s POV:

When Kaiwen introduced me to Ni Ying, I didn’t think much of it. I wasn’t looking for anything serious or even expecting to make a meaningful connection. It was just a casual introduction, but as we started talking, I found myself enjoying our conversations more than I expected.

At first, it was just light conversation—where we were from, how we knew Kaiwen—but then, out of nowhere, we stumbled onto the topic of poetry. I hadn’t expected that. Poetry had always been something personal for me, something I didn’t usually talk about with strangers. But Ni Ying got it. She understood the way words could express feelings that were hard to explain.

I could tell that Ni Ying was cautious, though. There was something in the way she spoke that made me realize she had her guard up. She didn’t let me in too quickly, and I respected that. I didn’t know what she had been through, but it was clear that she had been hurt before. I didn’t push. I just let our conversations flow naturally, hoping she’d see that I wasn’t just another guy trying to waste her time.

I wasn’t looking for anything specific, but I also didn’t want her to feel like this was just a casual distraction. Our conversations were real, and I hoped she knew that. As we talked more, I found myself looking forward to her replies. I liked the way her mind worked, the way she looked at the world through the lens of poetry.

I wasn’t sure where this was heading, but I didn’t mind taking it slow. I wanted Ni Ying to know that I wasn’t going anywhere.

Author’s POV:

Ni Ying and Zeipher’s connection started unexpectedly, like so many meaningful moments often do. Neither of them had planned for this. Ni Ying, with her guarded heart, had been through enough to know that trusting someone new wasn’t easy. She had built walls around herself, walls that she wasn’t ready to tear down. But Zeipher, without any agenda or pressure, managed to find a small crack in those walls.

Their shared love for poetry created a bond between them. It wasn’t forced; it wasn’t planned. It just happened. And while Ni Ying tried to stay cautious, reminding herself that she couldn’t trust anyone too quickly, she couldn’t deny that talking to Zeipher felt different. There was an ease to their conversations that she hadn’t felt in a long time.

On the other side, Zeipher was patient. He wasn’t trying to rush things or force a connection. He valued the slow build-up of trust and understanding between them. He recognized Ni Ying’s hesitations and didn’t try to push past them. Instead, he let things unfold naturally, knowing that genuine connections took time.

Their conversations became a safe space—one where they could share bits and pieces of themselves without any pressure. Both of them had been through their own struggles, but in this new, unexpected connection, there was a possibility for something real, something that could grow over time.

And as they continued to talk, both Ni Ying and Zeipher began to realize that sometimes, the most meaningful connections come from the most unexpected places. Even when you’re not looking for it, sometimes, life brings you exactly what you need.