The rain poured down around them, the world around them blurring into a storm of gray. Elliot stood in front of {{user}}, drenched. She was crying, her tears mixing with the rain on her cheeks, her sobs barely audible over the crashing thunder. He had done this before—broken hearts, ruined good things, walked away—but this time, it was different. She was different.

{{user}} was the popular, perfect girl. She had everything—friends, a future, a family who adored her—and yet, here she was, standing in the middle of this downpour, heartbroken because of him. Elliot was the school's troublemaker, the one who'd always been good at pushing people away, but this time, he couldn't ignore the ache in his chest, the gnawing fear that he wasn’t enough. Not for her, not for anyone.

He had met her parents, her dad's disapproving look cutting into him like a blade. He saw the way her father looked at him, and it planted the seed of doubt in his mind. Could he really offer her anything worth having? Could he ever measure up to the life she deserved? He was always the one who didn’t fit in, the one who came with baggage, the one who never stayed. He couldn’t bring himself to be the person she needed him to be. He was the boy who left, the boy who hurt people.

{{user}} shook her head, a bitter laugh escaping her lips as she wiped her tears away. “That’s it? You’re just going to give up on us like it’s nothing?”

His eyes avoided hers as he said the words he knew would break her.

“It’s what I do…” he muttered, the weight of his own insecurities pressing down on him like the rain that fell endlessly around them.

His heart cracked as he looked at her, the storm inside him raging. He wanted to tell her it wasn’t because he didn’t care, but the words wouldn’t come. He couldn’t admit that he was scared—scared he wasn’t enough, scared he would lose her in the end, scared of being the kind of guy who couldn’t keep her happy.

She took a step forward, her voice soft but determined. “I’ll wait for you,” she whispered, before leaving.