THE LOVE WE WERE NEVER MEANT TO KEEP


Chapter 1 — The Day I Met You


Selene's POV


I hated rainy days.
They made the world feel lonely.
That afternoon, I stood under the roof of a small coffee shop, watching the rain pour heavily in front of me. I had forgotten my umbrella, my phone was almost dead, and I was already late.
Perfect.


“Excuse me.”
I turned around.
A tall guy stood behind me, holding a black umbrella. His hair was slightly wet, and there was a small smile on his lips.


“You can use this.”
I stared at the umbrella.
“What about you?”
He shrugged.
“I'll survive.”
I laughed softly. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah. Besides, I think you need it more than I do.”
I took the umbrella from his hand.


“Thank you…”
“Ethan.”
I smiled.
“Selene.”
And that was it.
Just two names.
Just one umbrella.
Just one ordinary rainy afternoon.
At least, that's what I thought.
The next day, I saw him again.
Same coffee shop.
Same seat by the window.
And, apparently, the same smile.
“You came back,” he said.
“I always come here.”
“So do I.”


I raised an eyebrow. “Then why haven't I seen you before?”
“Maybe we weren't supposed to meet yet.”
I rolled my eyes.
“That's cheesy.”
He laughed.
“Maybe. But you smiled.”
I looked away, trying to hide the smile on my face.
And somehow, that became the beginning of everything.
We started seeing each other almost every day.
Coffee became our excuse.
Conversations became our habit.
And eventually, he became someone I couldn't imagine my days without.
He knew my favorite drink.
He knew I hated being alone when it rained.
He knew that when I said, “I'm okay,” I usually wasn't.
And I knew him too.
I knew the way his eyes softened whenever he talked about his dreams.
I knew he smiled whenever he was nervous.
I knew he pretended to be strong even when he was falling apart.
One evening, while we were sitting outside the coffee shop, Ethan suddenly asked,


“Selene?”
“Hmm?”
“Do you believe people meet for a reason?”
I looked at him.
“Why?”
He smiled.
“Just answer.”
I thought for a moment.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because some people come into our lives and change everything.”
He stared at me for a few seconds.
Then he whispered,
“Then I'm glad I met you.”
My heart skipped.
I looked down at my hands, trying not to smile too much.
“Me too.”
He reached for my hand.
His fingers slowly intertwined with mine.
And for the first time in my life, I wasn't afraid of the future.
Because I thought I had already found the person I wanted in it.
Months passed.
We became inseparable.
He was my first good morning and my last good night.
He was the person I called whenever something happened.
And one night, under the same rainy sky where we first met, Ethan kissed me.
It was soft.
Gentle.
Almost like a promise.
When he pulled away, he rested his forehead against mine.


“I love you, Selene.”
I smiled through my tears.
“I love you too.”
He held me tighter.
“Promise me something.”
“What?”
“Don't ever forget me.”
I laughed.
“Why would I?”
He didn't answer.
Instead, he hugged me.
I didn't know then that some promises are made by people who already know they won't be able to keep them.
I didn't know that our happiest memories were already counting down to their ending.
And I certainly didn't know that the boy who taught me how beautiful love could be...
would also be the boy who would teach me how painful goodbye could become.
Because sometimes, fate brings two people together not because they're meant to stay—
but because they're meant to leave a piece of themselves in each other's hearts.
And Ethan?
He was the piece of my heart I never learned how to let go.


To be continued…