Jesse was mid-sentence, when a slap landed like a gunshot in a quiet room.
A sharp crack split the air, echoing off the walls of the nearly empty hallway.
Jesse's head jerked slightly to the side, hair swinging. For a long second, she didn't move.
Didn't breathe.
MK didn't either.
Both women stood suspended in a moment that felt too fragile to touch — like a glass sphere about to shatter with the smallest sound.
Jesse slowly turned back, eyes wide and bright with stunned disbelief.
Her hand hovered near her cheek, not touching it, almost afraid that contact would confirm it had really happened.
"MK…?" she whispered, voice barely intact.
But MK's chest was heaving, her emotions a violent storm she couldn't control or contain.
"What I do is my business," she said, her voice raw, cracking at the edges. "You don't own my life."
Jesse stared at her as if she didn't recognize the person standing in front of her.
"I was there," she said, every word trembling, "when you were on the floor sobbing until you couldn't breathe… when you couldn't even eat… when you shook so hard I had to hold you like you were falling apart in my arms — and this is how you repay me?"
"I didn't ask you to!"
MK hadn't meant to raise her voice, but the sentence flew out like a blade.
Jesse's face crumpled.
Just for a moment.
Just enough.
Then she straightened — stiff, wounded, done.
Without another word, she walked away.
No dramatic exit.
No yelling.
Just a soft, defeated turn… and silence.
MK stood rooted to the spot until Ashley touched her arm.
Only then did she breathe.
---
MK threw open the hotel door, the slam shaking the frame.
Ashley stepped in carefully, watching MK with the kind of caution one uses with someone holding too many emotions at once.
The bag hit the couch with a violent thud.
"MK," Ashley said gently, "please talk to me. Are you okay?"
MK turned — and before Ashley got another word out, MK grabbed her by the hips and kissed her.
Not a soft kiss.
Not a tender one.
A desperate, wild, breath-stealing kiss.
Ashley's back hit the wall, MK's fingers tangled in her hair, her mouth insistent, hungry, trembling.
"MK—wait—hold on—" Ashley gasped between breaths, trying to steady her. "Slow down—slow down, baby—"
But MK pushed forward again, searching for something — escape, numbness, distraction — as if kissing hard enough could silence the screaming inside her.
Ashley finally pressed her palms against MK's shoulders and pushed gently but firmly.
"MK stop," she whispered.
MK froze.
The silence after felt loud.
She sat down at the edge of the bed like her body had suddenly given up on her. Her hands dangled uselessly between her knees. Her eyes looked hollow.
"What's wrong?" Ashley asked, voice barely above a whisper.
MK swallowed hard.
"I had a fight with Jesse," she said quietly. "I… slapped her."
Ashley sucked in a breath, shocked.
"You? Slap Jesse? MK… that's not—" She paused. "What happened?"
MK's jaw clenched.
"It was about work," she lied.
Ashley knew that wasn't true.
MK's eyes always gave her away.
But Ashley slid behind her, wrapped her arms around her waist, and rested her cheek between MK's shoulder blades.
"I'm here," she whispered.
MK's shoulders dropped the faintest bit.
"Thank you," she said in a faint, cracked voice.
Then: "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry."
The apology carried more weight than the night could hold.
Ashley didn't pry.
She just held her tighter.
That night, MK clung to Ashley like someone afraid of disappearing. Ashley murmured "I love you," soft as a confession — MK froze, but didn't move away. She just pressed her forehead against Ashley's collarbone and closed her eyes.
---
MK woke up first.
Ashley's arm lay across her waist, warm, trusting.
Something in MK softened.
Something else broke.
"Let me take you out today," she murmured over breakfast.
Ashley's smile lit up her whole face.
MK felt heat rush to her cheeks before she could stop it.
MK planned the day almost too carefully — as if building a perfect memory could fix the damage inside her.
The Glass Bridge
It stretched between two cliffs like a transparent thread, dizzyingly high. Tourists took photos. Kids screamed. Couples clung to each other dramatically.
Ashley froze the moment she stepped on it.
"M-MK… I can see down."
"That's the idea."
MK grinned.
"WHAT IDEA?! WHY WOULD ANY HUMAN—"
Ashley clung to MK's arm, nails digging in.
"Don't look down," MK advised casually. "Look at me."
Ashley did — big, terrified eyes locked on MK.
"You're enjoying this," Ashley whispered accusingly.
"A little," MK admitted.
They walked across slowly.
At the center, MK paused so Ashley could "enjoy the view."
Ashley nearly fainted.
MK laughed .
The moment mattered.
---
At The Hidden Tea House
Tucked between two rock formations, barely noticeable unless you knew where to look. Inside, lanterns glowed warm amber. Traditional music floated in the air.
Ashley gasped softly as they stepped inside.
"It's beautiful…"
MK felt warmth blossom in her chest at Ashley's joy.
They sat at a corner table, sharing a pot of mountain tea.
Ashley kept reaching across the table to brush her fingers against MK's — small, affectionate touches MK wasn't used to receiving.
"Is this why you brought me here?" Ashley teased.
"To make me fall for you faster?"
MK's heart fluttered.
"I thought you already had."
Ashley blushed so hard MK wanted to kiss her right there.
---
They took Photos by the Cliff Edge
Ashley insisted.
MK complied.
Ashley posed like a professional model, wind catching her hair, dress flowing beautifully.
"Your turn," Ashley declared.
MK groaned.
"Ashley. Please."
"NOW."
Ashley snapped photo after photo while MK stood stiffly, blinking at the camera as if it had personally offended her.
Ashley wheezed laughing.
MK ended up laughing too — reluctantly, but genuinely.
---
Meanwhile — SHRIYA
Shriya was on the mountain too.
She had come with Peach, Leah, and a few others, thinking the fresh air might clear her head.
Instead, she kept bumping into glimpses of… someone familiar.
At the tea house, she caught sight of a silhouette — tall, elegant, wearing a jacket she knew too well — slipping inside with a woman in a flowing dress.
"Shriya? You okay?" Peach asked.
"…I thought I saw someone," Shriya murmured.
They kept walking.
On the cliff edge, Shriya saw a profile from behind — MK's posture unmistakable — Ashley lifting a phone to take photos.
Her breath caught.
Peach and Leah turned at the sound.
"What?" Leah asked.
"Nothing," Shriya said, voice uneven. "Let's go."
She avoided every path MK took without knowing why — instinct, fear, heartbreak — until the avoidance led them all around the same spaces like planets orbiting a star they couldn't face.
They were in the same area for hours.
But never close enough to meet.
It was sunset when MK and Ashley finally began walking toward the exit.
They were holding hands.
Talking softly.
Tired in a pleasant way.
Ashley leaned her head on MK's shoulder.
"I didn't think you'd be such a romantic," she whispered teasingly.
MK opened her mouth to deny it — then stopped abruptly.
She froze.
Ashley felt the stillness first, then followed MK's line of sight.
Shriya was there.
Just a few meters away, walking from the opposite side with Peach, Leah, and a small group behind her.
Shriya's steps slowed.
Her eyes dropped immediately to the intertwined hands.
She didn't blink.
Peach exhaled loudly.
"Ohhhhhh boy."
Leah whispered, "Oh no…"
Ashley straightened.
MK's hand twitched —almost letting go,but she didn't let go.
"Is that your ex?" Ashley murmured quietly.
MK nodded once, breath shaky.
Shriya looked at Ashley like she was something too beautiful to be real — and too threatening to ignore.
Her eyes moved back to MK, searching, hurting, pleading — silently.
Ashley felt the tension coil in MK's hand.
Peach clapped her hands in the air.
"Well. This is awkward. Let's go say hi!"
"No—Peach—don't—" Shriya hissed.
Too late.
They were already moving forward.
MK's heartbeat roared in her ears.
Ashley held her hand tighter.
Shriya swallowed hard, trying to keep her composure as she walked toward the woman she once loved so deeply she ran herself empty.
Their eyes locked.
And the mountain air between them turned sharp as shattered glass.