DARK CHEMISTRY
Lizzie lay curled on her bed, blanket pulled to her chin, the room dim except for the soft glow of her bedside lamp.
Her pillow was damp.
Her eyes were swollen.
Her chest felt like it had been scraped hollow.
She kept replaying it—
the moment he slipped her hands off his coat,
the moment he walked away,
the last glimpse of him at the gate…
Her heart hurt so much she couldn't breathe properly.
Why did he have to leave?
Why didn't he choose me?
Why didn't he even hug me goodbye?
Her phone buzzed once.
She ignored it.
Buzzed again.
She turned her face away.
Buzzed a third time—
but this time it wasn't a message.
It was a video call.
Lizzie blinked in confusion through her blurry vision.
The name on her screen glowed.
Daniel Cegielski
📞 Video call incoming…
Her heart stopped.
Her breath locked in her throat.
Her hand shook as she hesitated.
Why is he calling? He's already gone. He's at the airport. He—
She pressed accept.
The screen lit up—
And Daniel's face appeared.
He was in an airport lounge.
Suitcase beside him.
Hair messy from running his hands through it.
Eyes tired.
But the moment he saw her face, wet and red from crying—
his expression shattered.
"Lizzie…" he breathed.
Her lips trembled.
She tried wiping her tears fast.
"S-sorry— I didn't know you would— I look horrible—"
"No," he said sharply, shaking his head.
"You look like someone I hurt. And I promised myself I wouldn't hurt you."
Her breath hitched.
"Then why did you leave me there?" she whispered, voice cracking.
"Why did you walk away without even—without—"
He exhaled shakily, rubbing his forehead.
"Because if I touched you again…"
His voice roughened.
"I wouldn't have had the strength to go."
Lizzie bit her lip, more tears falling.
"I needed you," she whispered.
"I know," he murmured.
"And that's why I'm calling."
He leaned closer to the screen, eyes locked on hers.
"I need you to hear this properly… not in a hallway while I'm trying to pretend I'm strong."
Lizzie sniffed softly.
"What… what do you want to say?"
Daniel's jaw tightened.
His voice softened.
"I didn't leave because I don't love you."
He paused.
"I left because I love you too much."
Her breath stopped.
"I needed you to be safe. To live your life. To grow. Not wait for a man tied between countries."
Lizzie whispered, "But I only want you."
He closed his eyes, pained.
"I know… and that's what scares me."
She stared at him, tears dripping onto her blanket.
"Then why call?" she asked quietly.
"If you're leaving… why make it harder?"
Daniel looked straight into the camera—
eyes filled with something vulnerable, raw, almost shaking.
"Because I needed to see your face one more time," he said.
"Because I can't walk onto that plane pretending you don't exist."
"Because I had to know you were okay."
Lizzie shook her head.
"I'm not."
He swallowed, guilt carving through him.
"I know."
Silence pooled between them—
heavy, emotional, painful.
Then Daniel whispered:
"Lizzie… if this is too much… if you want me to cut contact… tell me now."
Her eyes widened.
"N-No! I don't want that—! I don't—" her voice broke. "Don't disappear from my life."
Daniel breathed out shakily, relief softening his expression.
"Then I won't."
Her heart fluttered painfully.
He added quietly:
"I'll call you again when I land."
Lizzie held the phone tighter.
"Promise?"
He nodded once.
Real. Serious.
"Promise."
She wiped her eyes.
Daniel's gaze softened even more.
"And Lizzie?"
"Mm?"
"Try to sleep tonight. For me."
"I'll… try."
He paused, thumb brushing the edge of his phone as if he wanted to touch her.
"I'll miss you," he said, barely above a whisper.
Lizzie's breath trembled.
"I already do."
The call ended.
The screen went black.
Lizzie held the phone to her chest and finally let herself cry—
not out of heartbreak,
but something between pain and hope,
something she didn't have a name for yet.
Lizzie's trembling fingers swiped across the screen.
The moment his face appeared, the cold room around her seemed to melt — but her heart only tightened more. Daniel was in some small apartment room in Poland, his hair messy, dark hoodie on, a lamp glowing dimly behind him.
"Lizzie…" his voice cracked the second he saw her red eyes, her blanket pulled up to her chin.
Lizzie tried smiling. It wobbled instantly.
"H-Hi… sir…"
"Baby, don't," he whispered, leaning closer to the camera. "Don't force a smile… not with me."
Her chin quivered.
"I—I'm trying… but it h-hurts… Daniel… it hurts so much…"
And then the tears fell again — heavy, silent, unstoppable.
He inhaled sharply.
"Lizzie… Lizzie, please don't cry… hey… look at me… look at me, sweetheart…"
She shook her head, sobbing harder.
"I can't— I don't know how to stop, I don't know—"
"Shh…" His voice softened into something fragile. "My angel… breathe for me, please. You're breaking me…"
But Lizzie only covered her face, shoulders shaking.
"I just… I want you here… I want you home… I want—"
A sound cut her off.
A choked inhale.
A shaky breath.
Then—
A sob.
A real, broken sob.
From him.
Lizzie's own crying froze for a moment. Her hands slowly lowered from her face, eyes widening at the sight on the screen.
Daniel had bowed his head, his hand covering his mouth, tears slipping past his fingers and falling onto the desk below him.
He was crying.
He was crying because of her.
"Da-Daniel?" she whispered, voice tiny.
He tried to speak but his voice shattered.
"I hate this… I hate hearing you cry and not being able to hold you… I'm trying to be strong for you, Lizzie, I am… but god—" he wiped his cheek harshly, breath trembling, "—you're killing me like this."
Lizzie pressed the phone closer, tears falling again.
"Don't cry… don't cry, please—"
"How can I not?" he choked out. "You think it's easy for me? Leaving you behind? Waking up without you? I—" he swallowed sharply, voice unsteady, "I've never felt this kind of pain before."
He looked at her like she was the only person in his world.
"My little girl…" he whispered, breaking again. "Please… please don't cry alone…"
Lizzie sobbed weakly.
"Then come home…"
He shut his eyes.
A single tear slipped down.
"If I could," he whispered, voice trembling, "I'd be on the next damn plane."
Silence.
Just two broken hearts breathing into the same call.
"Lizzie?" he whispered.
"Mm?"
"Cry with me… just tonight… then tomorrow we'll both try again. Together."
And she did.
Holding her phone tight against her chest as his quiet sobs filled her room — the most painful lullaby she'd ever heard.
Lizzie wiped her cheeks with the back of her sleeve, breaths still soft and uneven. Her eyes were swollen, her voice tiny when she finally spoke.
"Daniel… I'm okay now… you should sleep…"
"No."
The answer came instantly, firm but gentle — his voice still thick from crying, still cracking at the edges.
"Don't cut the call."
Lizzie blinked.
"I wasn't—I just thought—"
"Put the phone beside you," he whispered. "Right next to your pillow."
Her heart thudded.
"W-Why…?"
He breathed out, slow and shaky, like he was trying to steady himself after everything.
"Because I want to hear you breathe."
Lizzie froze, her cheeks heating.
"D-Daniel…"
"Please," he murmured, brushing his fingers over his camera as if he were touching her face through the screen. "Let me stay with you tonight… even if it's only through the sound of your breathing."
Her lips parted, breath catching at the raw softness in his voice.
"Okay…" she whispered.
She shifted slowly, laying the phone beside her pillow. The camera now showed only part of her face — her cheek against the blanket, her lashes still wet, the dim room around her.
"Good girl…" he whispered, the words so soft they made her chest ache. "Don't sleep yet. Just… stay like this."
She nodded, exhaling a small, steady breath.
"Can you hear me…?"
"I can hear everything," he murmured. "Your breaths… your blanket moving… even the way your heartbeat changes when I speak."
Lizzie pressed her face into her pillow, flustered.
"Stop… you're embarrassing me…"
"I'm comforting myself," he admitted quietly. "I need to know you're real… that you're here… that you didn't cry yourself into silence."
Lizzie swallowed hard.
"I'm still here."
"I know."
A pause.
"And I'm not hanging up until you fall asleep."
She closed her eyes, her breathing growing softer, calmer, as his voice wrapped around her like a warm blanket.
"Daniel…?"
"Mm?"
"Say something… so I know you're still there."
He chuckled weakly — the kind of laugh that comes after too much crying.
"I'm not going anywhere, angel. I'll be right here… listening to you breathe… until morning if I have to."
Her eyes fluttered.
"Stay with me…"
"I already am." He whispered. "Sleep, Lizzie."
And with the phone resting between them like a fragile lifeline, she drifted off — while he stayed awake, listening to every gentle breath she made.