Don't forget to click that orange star 🌟.

****

"𝑺𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒌𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑺𝒕𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒔 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒌 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒃𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒔, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒔 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒖𝒓𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖...𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒚 𝒚𝒐𝒖."

𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒆𝒔 .𝑭. 𝑮𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒎𝒂𝒏

𝔼𝕃𝕐𝕆ℕ

"It's not that deep?! You are so fucking obsessed, it's infuriating!" Skye snapped

What?!

It took more than just a few seconds for me to get over those words that Skye had hurled at me.

To say I was pained was an understatement to the wave of emotions I was feeling. I felt extremely embarrassed and I knew this was just the beginning. I still couldn't imagine that she was blowing this entire issue out of proportion and I haven't even started speaking.

She only knew that I had gone to their house and I was there with Khalil and this was her reaction?

What was the big deal?

It only made me wonder how Mateo had painted the scenario to them. Something he knew absolutely nothing about.

On another hand, maybe it was just Skye that was being extremely extra about it.

"Hey! What the fuck is going on?!" Jamal's voice boomed across the room, shutting Skye and Mateo up. His voice held confusion and annoyance all together. Skye grimaced, turning to glare at me while I swallowed the sudden lump in my throat.

"Do you want to tell him or should I?" Skye asked, the anger in her voice undiluted. I was pretty annoyed myself. Why was she being so dramatic?

"Skye, you don't know the entire story." I tried to make my voice as calm as possible as I replied her.

"I don't know how Mateo painted it to you but he doesn't even know anything. I was at your house while you were still in England, big deal."

"You were at the house?" Jamal asked me, his confused expression very much evident and before I could even answer, Skye jumped in.

"You forgot to add that you were alone with Khalil." She stated, calling Khalil's name like it disgusted her and my face scrunched up in a frown just about the same way Jamal's face did. He peered at me, a deep frown on his face.

"You were at the house alone with Khalil? Why were you at the house alone with Khalil?" He asked me frantically, searching my eyes and I sighed, wondering how messed up this entire situation had gotten.

This wasn't how I wanted to tell Jamal.

"Yes, she was at the house and Mateo met her there." Skye spat out again. Whatever anger she was feeling was practically oozing out and I could smell it. I hated the fact that she was there, cutting in, not allowing me to talk to Jamal alone.

This was between Jamal and I. It wasn't even supposed to be this heated.

"That's not how it was..." Mateo started, trying to do damage control even though it was already too late for that. "It was mere coincidence." He added. I rolled my eyes and turned to Skye who was still busy glaring at me like she was the affected one.

Jamal wasn't even yelling the way she was yelling!

There wasn't even supposed to be any yelling for Christ's sake!

"What's the big deal if I was at your house with Khalil?" I asked her, trying to ignore the fact that Jamal was now pacing the room, muttering to himself.

"He was alone and I was keeping him company, so? You are making it seem like I was caught kissing him or cheating on Jamal." I threw my hands up in frustration. My statement caused Jamal to pause and look at me in shock.

"I don't know, are you cheating on Jamal?" Skye fired back without hesitation and everywhere became still with shock. Mateo's eyes were practically bulging out their sockets. Jamal was breathing heavily, clenching and unclenching his fist.

I on the other hand felt like I had been slapped.

Did my best friend just ask me that?

"W-what." I sputtered out, my palm pressed against my chest, waves of shock running through my entire being. Skye just looked on, not realizing how much her words had affected me.

Or Jamal.

The air was thick with so much tension and ear piercing silence. All I could do was replay the words that had come Skye's mouth in my mind over and over again like a record on repeat, piercing my heart over and over again. I couldn't even imagine what was going on in Jamal's head because those words had definitely taken a toll on him.

How low does Skye think of me?

"Skye, I need you to leave now." Jamal suddenly ordered, his voice dangerously low and edgy, it caused a shiver to run down my spine. Skye turned to look at Jamal, surprise written all over her face.

"Are you kidding..." She started but Jamal cut her off.

"This is between me and my girlfriend, so I need you to leave." He stated matter-of-factly, his voice leaving no room for argument. On a normal day, those words would have melted my heart to puddled but this kind of atmosphere didn't hold any sort of sweetness.

It was tensed as hell.

"Get her out of here." He told Mateo who nodded, letting out a sigh of exhaustation.

"With all pleasure." Mateo answered, trying to take hold of Skye's hand who was busy glaring daggers at her twin brother. She obviously didn't expect him to dismiss her like that.

I also didn't see it coming.

"Don't hold me." She told Mateo sharply, causing him to back off slightly. "I can walk out myself." She flashed Jamal one final glare before she walked out. Mateo threw both his hands on his head, muttering something in what sounded like Spanish. He then turned to look at me, an expression of remorse marrying his face.

"I'm sorry." He muttered, accepting the fact he had a big hand in this. I looked away from him, thinking hard of how I could diffuse the time bomb he had indirectly planted before it explodes. I only heard his footsteps before the door opened and closed,

Leaving on Jamal and I in the suddenly quiet room.

The silence was deafening.

It irritated me.

I looked up to see Jamal facing the wall filled with painting. It seemed like he was admiring them from where I was standing but I knew for a fact that that wasn't remotely the case. His feet was tapping very fast on the tiled floor and his fingers drummed on the wooden table.

He was anxious and I was scared for him.

He doesn't need this right now.

"It's not what you think, Jamal." I stated calmly, my voice piercing through the thick silence. Jamal immediately turned to him, emotions running through his entire face I couldn't even place one of them. I wasn't even sure what he was thinking and it scared me even more.

"It had better not be what I am thinking." Was his reply. His voice was thick and gruffy, I almost couldn't recognize it. I also digested his words, hoping that he wasn't thinking what I thought he was thinking.

For God's sake!

"Don't tell me you also think I am cheating on you, Jamal.  Because that will be so disrespectful and I'd be disappointed." I snapped, unable to control my emotions at this point.

"I don't know what to think, Elyon!" He retorted, throwing his hands up in frustration and I exhaled, feeling so many emotions running through my veins.

"And talk about disappointed," He continued, throwing his head back and letting out a short humourless laugh. I wrapped my hands around myself when he finally looked back at me, his eyes holding so much hurt.

"I told you everything you needed to know about Khalil! I told you how much he had hurt me as a kid. I told you how much he loathed me and wanted me to suffer! I told you how he almost made me die, Elyon! That was enough for you to run for the hills but you are still befriending him? Are you kidding me?"

His words held enough hurt to bring me to my knees but I knew I had to make him understand that all I was doing was for him. For Peace.

This is all wrong! This wasn't how it was supposed to go down.

"You can't just tell me to stay away from someone because of things that happened between the both of you in the past." I started, trying to keep my voice from quivering. "Yes, your reasons were justified but I needed to hear from his side. I need to find a loophole, something, anything that would stop this rift!"

"Loopholes! Elyon, I have told you everything you need to know!" Jamal snapped back, causing me to deflect back as he was already standing in front of me. "Don't you trust me enough to tell you the truth?" 

God, have mercy. Please. This isn't what I wanted.

"Jamal, I only know your truth." I breathed out calmly. Any more shouting and I'd just burst into tears. Jamal didn't say anything to that. His breathing was so erratic, I wanted to take his hand in mine and help him remain calm because of his health, but I didn't want to push it.

He was very much upset with me as it is and all I wanted to do was make him understand why I did what I did.

"I needed to find out his truth, find the missing pieces in both stories so that everything would be patched up once and for all." I continued, looking straight into his eyes as I said those words, searching them for a hint of understanding.

"Honestly, it's not like I planned it, we just spoke to that direction and..." Jamal rose his hand up to stop me from speaking any further.

"What did you two talk about?" He asked, his voice calm but still edgy at the same time. "Tell me everything." I sighed, trying to gather my thoughts enough to pick the right words to say so I won't screw everything up all over again.

"I told him everything you told me." I stated carefully and Jamal's face immediately contorted into an expression of disappointment and hurt.

"You told...God!" He growled out, burying his face in his hands. I began to fidget, feeling tears well up in my eyes and sobs clogging my throat.

"I just wanted him to admit that he was bad to you." I defended, trying to get Jamal to understand even though everything in me was telling me that it didn't matter anymore. But I still wanted to try.

God, please make him understand.

"He said that's not what happened that day..." I stopped talking when Jamal shot me a glare. A glare that had me freezing to one spot.

"And you believed him?" He asked, trying to know if I actually believed Khalil. I didn't even know if I believed Khalil. But I knew for a fact that I did not doubt him either.

This is a mess.

"You fucking believed him, didn't you?!" Jamal's gnarr cut through my train of thoughts and I looked to see the nerve wrecking glare on his face. "You believed him over me?!" He snapped again, his tone snapping the last ounce of control I had over my emotions.

"I just wanted to help!" I exclaimed, throwing my hands up in defeat and resignation.

"STOP!" He screamed, throwing me off completely and causing me to jump back in fright.

"Stop saying that! Stop saying you were trying to help because all you are doing is making it worse! That obsessiveness...that compulsiveness you always have...that hero complex attitude that makes you want to help everyone, is useless because you are not helping, okay?! You can't fucking save everyone, Elyon, so stop trying. It's fucking Aggravating! Maddening! Sickening! Just Stop it!" He bellowed, knocking the breath right out of me.

Wow...

☆☆☆☆

𝕁𝔸𝕄𝔸𝕃

Stop saying that! Stop saying you were trying to help because all you are doing is making it worse! That obsessiveness...that compulsiveness you always have...that hero complex attitude that makes you want to help everyone, is useless because you are not helping, okay?! You can't fucking save everyone, Elyon, so stop trying. It's fucking Aggravating! Maddening! Sickening! Just Stop it!" I bellowed, not realizing the gravity of what I had said until I said it finish.

Jesus!

What the hell did I just say?

Silence...

Heavy breathing...

God no...

Was all I could think of when I saw tears cascading from Elyon's eyes like a torrent, her legs moving back weakly till she was slouching against the table, steading her body with her hand. I became frantic and I began to panic. Elyon has never cried because of me and here I was, making her cry.

All because I couldn't contain my emotions.

"No...no...no." I muttered repeatedly, erratically, feeling my heart beat against my chest at a very rapid pace.

I hurt her.

I hurt Elyon!

Oh God!

I need to fix this

"Oh my God, Elyon... I didn't...I swear..." I was trying to get a proper and coherent apology out of my mouth but all I could do was stutter like an idiot. She wasn't even looking at me and It terrified me.

Making a bold step to move closer to her, I did but she rose her hand, stopping me from moving any further. My hands were shaking, my body unmovable as she rose her head up, her blood shot eyes meeting mine and I shook. The look on her face was enough for me to know that I had messed up.

Big time.

"You know what," She started, her voice quivering, tearing my heart into a billion pieces. "I honestly don't need this right now. I can't deal." Was all she said and the next thing I knew, she had side stepped me and was walking towards the door. But I wouldn't let her.

There was definitely no way I'd let her leave, knowing that I made her cry. I feared that if she walked out that dope, we'd be over and that terrified me to bits.

I don't want to loose her.

I quickly ran, getting to the door before her and obstructed her from going any further. She sighed, folding her hands across her chest.

"Let me go, Jamal." She requested calmly, eyes not meeting mine. I wasn't going to let her leave until I fix what I had done. I didn't want to hurt her, I didn't mean to hurt her.

"No. Not until we talk." I replied frantically, crouching my head severally so that I could get her to meet my eyes, to look at me at least but she kept looking away. It was hurting me.

What have you done, Jamal.

"I didn't mean any of what I said, Elyon. I am so sorry, I didn't mean to make you cry. I never wanted to hurt you..."

"But you did." She cut me off, finally looking me right in the eye. Her eyes held so much hurt, it hurts to look at her. It hurt even more knowing I did that to her.

I want to fix it. God, I want to fix it.

"But it's okay." She continued, sniffing and trying to wipe the tears that wouldn't stop falling from her eyes, the tears that I caused. "You definitely don't want someone with an obsessive, compulsive hero complex around you." Just hearing her repeat those words were like knives slicing through my skin.

I can't believe I said those words to her.

"Elyon, listen to me." I brought my hands to rest on either side of her face and gratefully, she didn't shrug them off, but she didn't look at me either. "I didn't mean any of those words I said. I didn't mean them. I'm sorry. I take it back. I take it all back. Everything!" I rambled on frantically, wanting her to believe me, to forgive me

"But you can't take them back." Her voice broke into sobs, making her words almost incoherent. Tears began to well up in my eyes, fear coursing through my veins as I continued to ask myself why I said all those hurtful words to someone I was supposed to care about,

Someone I was supposed to love.

God no! No, please...

Have I ruined everything?

"I need to go." She whispered softly, a hint of hoarseness from all the crying. It made me feel ten times worse than I already did.

"Elyon, please. Don't leave." I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes. My hands did not leave their position on her face, my thumbs caressing her tear stained cheeks, trying to get her to forgive me.

But she wasn't letting me.

Instead, she held both of my hands in hers and brought them away from her face, setting them down. When she wanted to remove her hand from mine, I didn't let her. I held unto it.

"Please..." I pleaded, begging, tears falling from my eyes in beads.

Elyon looked at me, her eyes meeting mine. They were teary, red, swollen, all because of me. I did this to her, I hurt her. She opened her mouth and closed it, like she wanted to say something but didn't know how to say it. It petrified me, had me thinking so many thoughts that sent cold chills down my spine

Was she going to break up with me?

"I need a break, Jamal." She whispered, her voice breaking and my heart breaking along with it.

"I need a break from always putting you first. I need a break from always trying to put your happiness and health first because that's what I do, that's how much I love you." She continued, picking her words one by one so they could sink it. And yes, they were sinking in, hitting every core of my being.

"But if this is what I get for trying to help you, then I can't deal. Not now. Not at this time." She maintained, shaking her head. I sniffed, allowing the implication of her words to settle in my mind.

She wanted me to stay away.

She pulled her hands away from mine and made to leave. This time I didn't stop her. She side stepped me and walked out of the Visual Art Studio...

Leaving me to feel angry, sad, guilty...

Empty.

A/N

To everyone that promised in the last update to beat up Jamal if he overreacts, this is your chance oo because he has said some words he cannot take back.

So I decided to drop one more update for this week majorly because I already had this chapter ready and I couldn't wait till next week to update (I apologize if it has any form of tackiness, I tried to make it perfect 🤧). Plus, some people almost chopped my head off in my dream because the last chapter was a cliffhanger. Here is a peace offering 😂.

Skye pretty much pissed me off and I'm sure as hell she pissed everyone else off. Like Guy! What kind of stupid question was that!

So, our star couple have broken up...can we call it a break up🤔? I don't know but they won't be together for a very very long time.

Jamal needs to find his bearing and deal with the hatred that has eaten deep into his soul. It won't be any easier because Elyon won't be there to help him through it. Elyon also needs to gather herself and try not to let this whole situation affect her finals.

Majorly, they both need some time apart.

Expect an update later next week...like late later, towards the ending of next week sha. Don't forget to VOTE and comment and also share. Engage me 🥴🥴

See you when I see you 💖💖😘😘