The apartment was a mess of half-unpacked boxes, bubble wrap, and chaos that smelled faintly of takeout and fresh paint. Jay adjusted the sleeves of her oversized sweatshirt and eyed the next box in the stack-boldly labeled in red ink: FRAGILE.
"You want help with that one?" Keifer asked from across the room, arms full of mismatched cushions that looked like they'd been rescued from different timelines.
"I got it," she said, determined. Her arms slipped under the box, and she lifted-almost. It wobbled, her grip uneven. One clumsy step backward and the corner of the box slammed into the coffee table.
Crash.
Something inside cracked, then shattered.
Jay froze.
Keifer looked up instantly. "Jay?"
Jay's heart sank. Her mind flashed back to another time-a time when she'd been so careful, so full of apologies after breaking something.
Few Years Ago
Jay had been at Yuri's dorm, sitting on the floor with her legs crossed, dusting off a small shelf. She was always careful around his things, knowing how much he valued his collection.
His dorm was full of trinkets and fragile items that he often bragged about. One particular item-a delicate, vintage glass figurine-was displayed prominently on the shelf.
She reached for a photo album that was on the edge of the shelf when her elbow nudged the figurine. In slow motion, she saw it tip over, and before she could react, it crashed to the ground, shattering into sharp pieces.
Her heart sank. She froze, eyes wide in horror.
"Yuri... I'm so sorry," Jay said immediately, her voice panicked. "I didn't mean to. I'll pay for it, I swear, I'll replace it. Please, don't be mad."
Yuri, who had been sitting across the room, looked up slowly. He sighed, but instead of yelling, his expression softened at least, on the surface.
"It's fine, Jay. Really," Yuri said, his voice cool but calm. "It's just a thing. No need to freak out."
Jay swallowed, trying to breathe in the relief. "You're sure?"
He nodded, brushing a lock of hair from his face. "Yeah, it's okay. It wasn't that important. But..." He trailed off, and Jay couldn't help but notice the way his tone shifted, just slightly.
"But?" she repeated.
Yuri's eyes flickered down to the broken glass on the floor. "But I just don't get how you could be so careless sometimes. You've been here so many times, you should know better. It was important to me, and now it's gone. Do you realize what that means?"
Jay flinched, her guilt resurfacing.
She had broken his prized possession, and now she felt like the worst person in the world. She shook her head. "I swear, I didn't mean to break it. I can make it right. I'll find a replacement."
Yuri sighed deeply, his face softening again, but his voice now had a subtle edge to it. "I know, Jay. I know. But it's just hard when you keep doing things like this. It's like... do you really care about my things? About what matters to me?"
Jay's heart dropped. She wasn't sure if he was upset over the figurine, or if this was about something deeper. She tried to defend herself. "I do care! Of course, I care. I'm just... I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to-"
Yuri shook his head slowly, cutting her off. "I get it, Jay. It's just... this isn't the first time. And every time it's the same thing-me forgiving you, trying to make you feel better. I don't want to keep doing that. I want you to understand how important it is, how careful you have to be."
Jay felt her face heat up with shame. She wasn't sure if it was because she had broken his thing or because of the way he was making her feel-like this was somehow her fault, like she was the one who had messed everything up.
"I do understand. I'm sorry," she whispered, looking down at the broken pieces. She didn't want to argue. She just wanted to make it right. But as she knelt down to pick up the shards, the guilt wrapped around her tighter.
Yuri stood up, walking over to her with a soft sigh. "It's okay. I'll get over it, Jay. Just... try to be more careful next time, okay? I don't want to be upset with you, but this keeps happening."
He placed a hand gently on her shoulder, a gesture that was meant to be comforting but felt strangely patronizing.
Jay nodded, feeling like the weight of his words was suffocating her. "I will. I'll be more careful. I promise."
But in the back of her mind, she couldn't shake the feeling that this wasn't just about the broken figurine. It was about something deeper, something that made her feel like she could never get it right with Yuri. No matter how hard she tried, she always ended up feeling like she was the one to blame.
Present Day
As she carefully gathered the shards of the mug, the sharp edges reminding her of the porcelain pieces from the past, Jay couldn't shake the nagging memory of how Yuri had reacted when she made a similar mistake. The guilt, the shame. He'd twisted her actions, made her feel like she was constantly in the wrong, even when she had tried her best. I should have been more careful. I should have been perfect, she thought, the old self-doubt creeping in.
But as she stood there, staring at the broken mug, she was pulled back to the present by Keifer's calm presence beside her.
He gently brushed the pieces aside, his hands steady as he checked that she wasn't hurt. His voice was warm and reassuring.
"Are you okay?"
She blinked, still caught between the past and present. "I'm fine. But the mug "
Keifer shrugged nonchalantly. "It's just a mug. You didn't get hurt, right?"
Her heart clenched as she tried to explain, her guilt resurfacing. "No. But I should be more careful. I just-"
Keifer's gaze softened as he looked up at her, his tone steady, the way he always spoke when he meant something real. "Jay. You're not a walking disaster. You're someone who tried to help. That matters more."
She stared at him, a little lost in the kindness of his words. It was so different from what she was used to.
"You're not mad?"
He smiled, a mix of amusement and affection in his eyes. "Mad? No. You just gave us a reason to go mug shopping together."
Jay paused, the words sinking in. He wasn't angry. He wasn't disappointed. He was making light of it, joking even.
It felt foreign, comforting in a way she hadn't realized she needed.
"What if I break something else?"
Keifer shrugged again, brushing off her worry like it was no big deal. "Then we replace it. Or we don't. Maybe we frame the pieces and call it modern art."
She let out a weak laugh, shaking her head. "You're annoyingly calm about this."
Keifer gave her an easy smile. "What's the point of getting worked up? It's just stuff. And you're more important than anything I own."
The tension in her chest eased, and Jay couldn't help but feel a little lighter.
"I grew up in a house where everything was fragile," Keifer said with a grin, his voice soft but teasing. "If something wasn't broken, it wasn't worth keeping."
She raised an eyebrow. "Did you ever break anything important?"
"Once I knocked over my mom's glass hummingbird sculpture. I blamed the dog. We didn't have a dog."
Jay actually laughed, for real this time.
He took the mug pieces and dropped them carefully into a bag. "Come on. Help me put this tragic tale to rest."
She followed him to the kitchen, still feeling the heat of her embarrassment on her neck.
He tossed the bag into the trash bin and turned back to her. "You know what this really means, right?"
"That I'm clumsy and should avoid fragile objects?"
"No. That now we have an excuse to get weird, unnecessary mugs. Like one shaped like a dinosaur."
Jay squinted. "You want a dinosaur mug."
"I need a dinosaur mug."
She shook her head, the tension finally leaving her shoulders. "You're ridiculous."
He leaned against the counter. "But effective. You're not panicking anymore."
She paused. "You planned that?"
He shrugged. "Not really. But if it helped, I'll take the credit."
Jay looked around at the chaos that was now their shared apartment. It still didn't feel quite real. Not yet. But something about Keifer's ease-his calm, his silly mug jokes, the fact that he cared more about her than what she broke-made it feel a little more like home.
He nudged her gently with his elbow. "Come on. Let's finish unpacking before we find out what else is labeled 'fragile."
They moved around in a quiet rhythm -her sorting cords and books, him digging through random shoeboxes. The music played low in the background, and for a moment, it felt like peace.
Then he whistled.
"Well, well, what do we have here?"
Jay glanced up from her fairy lights. "What?"
Keifer turned, holding up a small photo with all the reverence of someone discovering a national treasure. "Is this you? With the tiara and sunglasses combo? Wait-are those fairy wings?"
Jay dropped the lights. "Keifer. Hand. It. Over."
He grinned, already stepping backward. "I can't. I'm blinded by your royal energy. Princess of Mayhem reporting for duty!"
"Give it!"
She lunged. He dodged, spinning away and laughing like a kid who just stole candy.
"Look at this tiny terror," he said, studying the photo again. "Was this before or after you learned to weaponize sarcasm?"
Jay flushed crimson. "I was five! And I will murder you in your sleep."
"I believe it. Honestly, this belongs in a gallery. Exhibit A: Origin story of the world's most dramatic adult."
She reached again. He darted behind the kitchen counter.
"You know what?" he added, sticking the photo to the fridge with a ridiculous pineapple-shaped magnet. "This is going right here. Our guests should know what they're walking into."
"I hate you."
"No you don't. You're just overwhelmed by how photogenic you were. This tiara? It's doing the most."
Jay folded her arms. "I swear, if you make that the wallpaper on your phone-"
"I'm considering a mug."
"Keifer!"
He stepped forward, smug. "You've got a whole box labeled 'private' and you didn't think I'd find the blackmail gold?"
She rolled her eyes, trying to suppress a reluctant smile. "You're insufferable."
"And yet," he said, tapping the photo on the fridge gently, "you moved in with me."
She eyed the photo, then looked at him, amused and slightly flustered. "You actually like it, don't you?"
He softened for a second. "I do. Wild little Jay with her crooked crown. Makes sense now."
Jay blinked. "What does?"
He winked. "That you've always been a little bit magic."
She threw a pillow at his face.
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Thankyou for your patience✨
I got really sick and I am still suffering from typhoid. .. due to that I got hospitalise and I couldn't post anything I was writing this chapter from 3 days but couldn't completed I completed it now and I am posting I don't know whether I can post tomorrow or not but I hope you really understand my condition. .
Thank you for your support✨