I was walking home from Kieran's when a boy, completely unknown to me, walked up to me.
"May I help you?" I asked him. He was about Kieran's height, with a beautiful pair of eyes. He wore baggy jeans, a long shirt, and a big black-and-grey sweater, all styled with a red pair of Converse. He had a lot of fluffy ebony hair with perms, and a defined jawline.
As he spoke, I noticed dimples on both sides of his lips. "Hi," he shuffled his feet, glancing nervously at the ground before meeting my eyes. "I'm sorry to bother you, but," his voice wavered, "are you Kamber?"
"Yes? What can I do for you?" I asked skeptically. The boy seemed sweet, but you never know. "Ah, nice to meet you," he said, sticking out his hand. "I'm Jaehoon."
"Nice to meet you."
"So, erm," he began, tense, "you're not going to like this."
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Kane burst through my door. "I'm going to murder him!" I looked at my best friend through a curtain of tears, unable to speak.
Kane halted, closing the door slowly before sitting cross-legged at my feet.
"You okay, Sweetie?" he asked softly after a few minutes of silent comfort. I shook my head.
How could I be? I felt broken. Shattered.
"Want to talk about it?"
"Well, at first I thought it was all one sick joke, even when I saw the sympathy in the boy's eyes. But when I later called that Oliver guy, my stomach churned as his voice confirmed the worst.," I explained shakily.
Kane nodded. "And how do we feel about it?"
"I-I couldn't believe it. Still can't. The boy kept saying how sorry he felt, that he really didn't know."
"How did he even find out?" Kane asked.
"He saw a picture," I explained, to which Kane hummed.
"And did he, sorry to ask, back up his claim with something?"
"He-" my voice cracked at the memory, "he sent pictures. It's pretty clear. He said he felt like shit when he found out and immediately wanted to tell me. So he did some digging and found me. But he felt too guilty to say it in person."
"And that's where Jaehoon came into the picture," Kane said.
"That's where Jaehoon came into the picture," I confirmed.
Kane pouted and scooted closer to where I was tucked beneath the blanket. As his warm arms enveloped me, I felt a little better. But only a little. I wished he could hold me like this forever.
I replayed this afternoon in my head. I'd messaged that Oliver boy right away, on my walk home, and ended up blasting through the front doors in tears.
I heard voices coming from Poyraz abi's room and tried to get to mine before they noticed me.
But I couldn't.
Poyraz abi caught up to me just before I could slip inside, holding me by the wrist. "So, you're finally back? Ken brought your wallet; you left it in his car." When he saw my face, a frown formed.
Kenji looked puzzled too. "Kamber? Are you okay? What happened?" he asked, caring as always.
"It's nothing," I lied, wiping my tears and forcing a smile. "Don't worry, nothing happened."
"It seems like something did happen. You know you can tell us, right? We're here for you."
As I looked into his eyes, I broke down and collapsed to the ground. Kenji knelt beside me and pulled me into a hug. "Kamber? Please, let us help you," he whispered softly.
They'd always been like this, both of them. That's what made them so important to me. They cared with their whole hearts, unable to stand any pain or injustice aimed at me.
I buried my face in his shirt, the fabric damp with my tears. My fingers dug into his shoulders, desperate to hold on to something real as my body shook with silent sobs."He cheated on me, Kenji. He cheated on me."
Kenji's hand on my back stilled. I felt him freeze beneath my touch.
After a while, I looked up. They exchanged glances and then both gave me the same reassuring smile…though Kenji's looked more strained.
Poyraz abi gently helped me to my feet and led me to my room, promising everything would be okay.
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Two days after I found out, I confronted Kieran. Not that I wanted to. I was forced to.
Plus, they'd bribed me with ice cream.
So, I rang Kieran's bell at 9 a.m. while the others waited in the car. Kieran opened the door, smiling as he tried to hug me. I dodged beneath his arms and entered the apartment, arms crossed.
Kieran frowned. "Good morning to you too, Buttercup. Hope you slept well?"
"Same to you. Hope I didn't interrupt anything. Or should I have called first?"
"What are you talking about?" he asked, genuinely confused.
"You know? I fell for it. I really did. Turns out you're just a fake asshole," I snapped, staring straight into those oh-so-lost eyes.
"Fell for what, Dove? Has something happened?"
This little piece of- "Yeah, you."
"What?"
"You know, I should've listened to Kenji from day one. I really should have."
"Kenji? Kamber, what are you talking about? I'm lost," he pleaded, shaking his head.
"Always."
"What?"
"You said 'always'!" I yelled, my voice breaking.
"Whoa, whoa. Baby, calm down, what's happening?" He stepped forward, trying to touch my shoulder.
I shook him off.
"Don't touch me."
"Why?"
"The touch of hands, hands that have touched God knows how many people besides me, is of no use to me."
Kieran looked at me for a moment, realization dawning."Dove, let me-"
"No. You've done enough," I sighed.
"No, you don-"
"I what? Huh? Don't give me some lame excuse like 'You don't get it' or 'It's not what it looks like.' Because it is what it looks like. You cheated on me."
"Okay, yes. I vented my irritation somewhere else. But that was only so I could keep being the sweet, romantic Kieran you know!"
I stared at him in disbelief. My voice cracked as I spat the words at him. Heat rose in my chest, and I felt my hands ball into fists. "So that's supposed to, what, make it all okay? Like you can just brush it away with some half-baked apology? It doesn't erase what you did. It doesn't erase the fact that you cheated on me. Listen, Thompson; don't talk to me, call me, text me, don't even look at me in public. Nothing."
"Kammy, please liste-" His voice was breaking too. Should've thought about that before cheating.
"I gave you my everything, Kieran. But apparently that wasn't enough. Because in exchange, you lied and hid things from me. I hope he gave you everything you wanted. I hope he'll care for you like I did, love you like I did, touch and fuck you like I did."
"Kammy, my sweet Kammy, listen, it meant nothing," he tried to put a hand on my arm again, but I dodged it.
"It meant nothing? Please. I don't want to hear your pathetic excuses, okay? And I'm not yours. I was at yours almost daily. If you had problems, you could've told me. You know…me? Your boyfriend? Oh wait, my bad; ex-boyfriend," I spat.
"Kam, please," he begged.
"As if," I paused, "You know, I loved you, Thompson. But you mistook my fondness for weakness. We're done. I wish you and your future partners the best. Thanks for four years of this bullshit." With that, I turned around and walked away, ignoring his screams behind me.
I slid into the car's backseat, the door clicking shut with finality. A rush of relief swept over me, like a tight band snapping loose in my chest. I let out a long, shaky breath, feeling lighter for the first time in weeks. I looked at the others and smiled, "Who's ready for some ice cream."
Kane hugged me as Kenji started the car.
That whole thing had happened almost three weeks ago. Three weeks filled with tears, late-night snacks with Poyraz abi, carnivals with Kenji, movies with Kane, and lots of dinner dates.
But now, that was history. A closed chapter. I'd be starting a new one today.
I smiled at myself in the mirror when I finally got ready. As I came downstairs and sat at the breakfast table, Poyraz abi whistled. "Someone looks ready for their first day of work."
I smiled, "First day of work, and the first day of my new chapter."
He smiled back. "I don't know, I liked the last couple of chapters. You could always rewrite your story, leave out the bad parts or the bad characters. Maybe focus more on the ones you've overlooked."
"No thanks," I chuckled, "I'll start a new one, still appreciating the old ones, though."
"Sure, buddy. Eat up and I'll drop you off. Mom and Dad aren't home."
And so, for the first time in weeks, I had breakfast full of new hopes. Work had better be as fun as Kenji said it would be.