Chapter 8: Stars in his smile, Storm in his silence

 For Zina, it was love at first meeting, she didn't need three conversations or weeks of bonding just that first evening, standing in the glow of blinking Christmas lights outside Ada's off-campus compound. He had a low laugh, eyes that darted shyly, and a way of leaning slightly forward when he spoke that made her feel like she was the only one in the world, His name was Richard.

 He wasn't her first love, but the way her stomach fluttered told her this might be different. She blamed Ada or thanked her for planting the seed, Ada had gone on and on about how Richard was different, how he had a future, how he liked Zina before even meeting her. She had painted a perfect picture the loyal friend's endorsement and Zina, hungry for connection and perhaps for rescue, let herself believe it.

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She began to listen to love songs differently, every time she plugged in her earphones and heard lyrics about forever, her heart whispered Richard's name in between the verses. He filled her daydreams, her night prayers, her diary pages, She had never felt this sure about anyone, maybe it was the timing, maybe it was the loneliness.

Maybe it was just that she needed someone to choose her gently, genuinely.

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Richard lived in a shared apartment. Nothing fancy. A mattress on the floor. A desktop fan humming like a lullaby. But when she sat across from him on that first night and he reached for her hand, Zina felt like she had entered a story she didn't want to end, and then came the kiss, Soft, intentional, it wasn't rushed or messy, It was the kind of kiss that makes you believe in new beginnings.

That night, Zina told herself she had found her home in another human being.

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He celebrated her birthday like it meant something to him, there was cake not store-bought, but ordered and delivered with her name spelled in frosty letters. He surprised her with a dress she had once casually admired while window-shopping, The way he remembered made her eyes sting.

 He even took her to a club her first time and for a girl raised in restriction, it felt like walking into another universe. The flashing lights, The pulsing bass, the thrill of moving her body freely for once. He laughed with her, held her waist like she was made of glass, and whispered things in her ear that made her toes curl.

Later, on the way back, they stopped to stargaze.

They sat on a low pavement under the wide-open sky, and he brushed her hair behind her ears. "You're special, Zina," he said. "And I'll protect that," His voice felt like a promise, One she didn't know was breakable.

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But love, as she would learn, is not built on moments alone, love must be tested in silence, in confusion, in storms, slowly, things began to shift.

 Calls weren't returned as fast. His laugh didn't come as freely, plans were always pending. When they kissed now, his eyes seemed to drift elsewhere. She didn't want to believe it she pushed the thoughts aside, made excuses, told herself he was just busy, tired, distracted.

But her heart was already bruising in the silence, still, she held on, not because she was desperate, but because it felt too good to give up. After so much heartbreak, so many unspoken wounds, she wanted this one to work. She wanted to be enough this time. And maybe, just maybe, she thought loving harder could fix what was slowly unrunraveling, but stars, no matter how they shine, can't stop the night from falling.

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