Ch. 17: Breaking Points

It started with a broken glass.

Stupid, really.

Kael was just trying to grab the sugar from the top shelf. His elbow knocked into a cup. It fell and shattered across the kitchen floor.

Riven came rushing in, eyes wide. "Shit—what happened?"

"I just dropped it," Kael muttered, crouching to pick up the pieces.

Riven moved to help, but Kael snapped, "Leave it. I've got it."

Riven froze.

Kael heard the hesitation in his voice. "Okay... damn. You don't have to bite my head off."

"I said I've got it," Kael repeated, louder this time.

The silence stretched.

Riven stood up, arms crossing. "Alright. You wanna act like a dick over a cup? Be my guest."

Kael flinched, but didn't look up. "I'm not acting like a dick."

"Then what the fuck are you acting like?" Riven snapped.

Kael stood, holding a sliver of broken ceramic in his fist.

"Like someone who doesn't need to be rescued every time he drops a fucking cup."

"That's not what I'm doing—"

"You hover, Riven," Kael said, voice shaking. "Like I'm made of glass."

"Maybe because I'm scared you'll fucking shatter," Riven yelled.

The air between them cracked.

Kael dropped the shard in the trash, breathing hard. "I'm not a fucking charity case."

"I never said you were."

"You treat me like one."

"No," Riven growled. "I treat you like someone I love, and maybe that scares the shit out of you."

Kael's chest heaved.

Riven stepped forward, eyes burning. "Tell me I'm wrong."

Kael couldn't.

"Every time I get close," Riven said, voice quieter now, "you pull away. Like I'm gonna hurt you too."

Kael finally looked up. "Because everyone fucking has."

There it was.

That crack in the dam.

Kael felt it coming, but he couldn't stop it.

"I told Alyssa about my dad," he said, voice raw. "About how he used to lock me in the closet when I cried. How he told me real men don't break. She told me to stop being dramatic. That I was using it to get pity."

Riven's breath hitched.

Kael laughed bitterly. "And you wanna know the worst part? I believed her. I stopped talking about it. I shoved it down so deep I forgot how to fucking feel anything."

Riven reached out slowly, like approaching a wounded animal. "Kael…"

But Kael stepped back.

"I thought if I kept everything pretty and quiet, I'd be lovable. That no one would leave if I stayed clean, polite, simple."

He looked up, tears hot in his eyes.

"But I'm not simple, Riven. I'm a mess. I overthink every word. I panic when you're five minutes late. I dream about shit that happened when I was seven and wake up choking."

Riven's voice broke. "Then let me in. Let me carry that with you."

Kael shook his head, backing into the counter. "What if you see everything and leave too?"

"I won't."

"You say that now."

"Because I fucking mean it."

Kael looked at him, breathless.

And Riven stepped forward again—gently, but firmly—and placed a hand on Kael's chest.

"Tell me," he said, softer now. "Tell me everything you've never told anyone. Even if it's ugly. Even if it's broken."

Kael let out a shaky breath.

And he did.

He told Riven about the nights he hid in the bathroom with headphones so he wouldn't hear his parents scream. About the day his mom left and never came back. About the panic attacks he called "asthma" so his friends wouldn't ask questions.

And Riven didn't interrupt. Didn't flinch.

He just listened, arms open.

When Kael finally fell silent, drained and trembling, Riven pulled him in like he was the last thing worth holding on to.

"You're safe now," Riven whispered. "With me. You don't have to hide anymore."

And Kael, who had spent his whole life pretending to be fine, broke.

Not in a destructive way.

In a way that felt like finally putting down a weight he'd carried too long.

And Riven held every broken piece like it was precious.

—

That night, they didn't say much more.

They just lay tangled in bed, Kael curled against Riven's chest, breathing in his warmth, his heartbeat, his quiet promise:

I've got you. Even when it's hard. Especially when it's hard.

And for the first time in years, Kael didn't fall asleep afraid.

He fell asleep held.