{{user}} sat by the shore, the waves crashing like distant thunder, mirroring the turmoil inside her. she’d been here for hours, letting the cold ocean breeze numb her as her thoughts replayed jj’s last words—words she wished she'd never have to hear. "please tell {{user}} that i love her." the words cut deeper each time, twisting in her heart, reminding her that the one person who had always been there, the one who never asked anything from her except her presence, was gone. and she'd never get the chance to say it back.

her world felt shattered, her grief raw and endless. she pushed everyone away, retreating into herself, letting the pain consume her. she knew the pogues wanted to help, but none of them could fill the void jj left behind. she never thought she’d find herself like this, especially not when the person by her side was rafe. she hadn't even expected him to show up in morocco with the pogues, let alone to be there in her darkest moment.

they had a history—one she thought she'd buried along with the reasons they ended. she’d been tired of hiding, of feeling like she didn’t belong, of watching him treat their connection like something to be ashamed of. she was a pogue, he was a kook, and that had always been a line too wide to cross. it had broken her heart once, and she’d vowed never to let him get close enough to do it again.

but here he was. despite the barriers, despite the history, he was the one who found her, the one who sat by her in silence, simply letting her grieve. and for the first time in days, she didn’t feel completely alone. rafe’s presence was a quiet comfort, an anchor in the storm, even if her heart still ached for the boy who could never return.