Love Interrupted

Kaya rested her head on the subway window as she turned the music down on her headphones to get some sleep, as she was the only one in the car. As soon as she closed her eyes, her phone rang in her ears. It was a FaceTime call.

"What are you doing up so early, Bree?"

"Are you almost home, Mommy?"

"Soon, baby, go back to sleep, okay? "

"I can't... Uncle Tommy is snoring again, and Grandma is making too much noise in the kitchen. "

"Turn on your Moshi sound, and I will be home soon to give you some back scratches, okay? But I'd better see you in bed when I get there, Bree. "

"Okay"

Kaya hung up the phone and rested her head again, staring blankly at the sky. Suddenly, an air whistle escaped her throat, and her chest rose sharply. She tried to breathe in, but it was a shallow and strained effort. She wheezed. Kaya clutched her chest, coughing. Her eyes darted around. She bent forward, fumbling at her backpack, yanking it open. Wallet, book, pens, a crushed granola bar, . . .no inhaler.

Where is it? Where is it. . .? WHERE THE FUCK IS IT??

Her breathing was fast, erratic, and jagged, like a broken engine. She dug deeper. The inhaler was not there. Kaya dropped to her knees on the grimy subway floor, pulling everything out and throwing it desperately. Her lips began to turn pale blue. A man dashed toward her from the corner of the subway train. He handed her an inhaler.

"It's albuterol; take it!"

She snatched it and took a puff. Then another.

After a choking gasp, oxygen began to fill her lungs. Relief flooded her face as she coughed and collapsed into the man's arms, drenched in sweat and trembling. The man helped Kaya back into her seat as she apologized for collapsing.

"Where did you come from? I thought I was alone."

"Oh," he laughed nervously. I was in the corner," he pointed.

"Well, thank you, guardian angel. I am Kaya," she smiled.

"Michael." He smiled back awkwardly, then, realizing the train was slowing down, he backed up.

"Nice to meet you, Kaya. Please keep the inhaler."

"Oh no, that's not necessary. I am sure I have another one. Is this your stop?" She looked at him, wondering why he was backing away.

"Oh, no, it is yours." He smiled and returned to his seat as the train stopped.

Kaya looked outside and realized that it was indeed her stop. She grabbed her bag and ran out. As the train took off, she waved to her guardian angel. A second later, she wondered how he knew that was her stop.

The answer came twenty-four hours later when she saw him in the same seat as the day before. Kaya stood in front of him, holding onto the cold metal pole. He glanced up and smiled.

"You are not a stalker, are you ?" she asked lightly.

He laughed. "Excuse me, I have been taking this train for the past few years, and I have never seen you until last week."

"So, how did you know it was my stop yesterday?"

"You notice things when you ride the same train every morning."

"Is that right? What else did you notice?"

"You work at Rush Hospital. You have a child. You are not married. Green is your favorite color."

"Wow, impressive."

And so they began talking. Michael told her how much he hated his job at an insurance company where he calculated risks. He preferred drawing, but his parents told him to study something that would get him a real job. He had a younger brother, who made it big in life just a couple of years ago, buying freaking crypto. Kaya told him she was a CNA at Rush and had a daughter. Her ex-boyfriend was an immature gamer with no aspirations, so a year ago, she broke up with him and moved in with her mother. She also had a younger brother, but didn't say much about him.

Family stories turned into books, books turned into politics, politics turned into art, and art turned into fears, laughter, old wounds, and quiet dreams.

When the train paused in the tunnels, they barely noticed. The screeching and announcements blurred into background noise behind the conversations that stretched between them like an invisible thread.

A week later, Michael welcomed her with an iced coffee. She was shocked he remembered her exact order. Still, they never made plans to meet outside the subway. The safe bubble of their morning rides felt fragile, sacred almost.

The next morning, Kaya didn't get off the train.

"Bree is going to hang out with her cousins today, and I wanted to see what would happen if we went all the way to the end of the line."

Michael stared, his heartbeat quickened.

"That's my stop."

She grinned. "I know."

The train groaned forward. The rest of the train ride, Michael opened up like a door no one had ever tried before. Kaya always asked the right questions. She never took her eyes off him. For the first time, Michael felt heard and seen and heard. Once at his place, she kissed him as soon as he closed the door to his condo. They spent the entire morning and afternoon in bed. Michael fell in love. Hard.

The night after, they went on their first date and spent the evening in his place again. After that, they were inseparable. If they were not together physically, they texted all day and night. It has only been a couple of weeks, but Michael was ready to take this to the next level. Yes, it was too fast and wild, but he did not care. He was a man in love.

"So, are you free Saturday night?" He tentatively asked.

"Ooooooohhhhh, you are not tired of me yet?" she teased.

"Not at all, in fact it is the opposite. . . It's my douchebag's brother's birthday, and I thought it would be nice for you to come."

"Aw, are you introducing me to your family?" She laughed.

"I guess."

"I am free. Is it at like a restaurant or a bar? Is it like a party thing? A dinner thing? Basically, do I need to go shopping?"

This time, he laughed. "Well, definitely not a restaurant or a bar. It's in his mansion up north."

"I am sorry, did you say mansion?"

"Yes, yes, I did."

"Hmm, well, time to go shopping, I guess." She paused. "Hey, want to make this our first official shopping trip together?"

Of course, he agreed.

Kaya looked very nervous on the day of the party. She tried to hide it, but Michael sensed it very quickly. He teased her by asking if she brought her inhaler with her.

"You ready for this?" He asked, his voice low.

She hesitated. "Ready as one can be for those things."

They stepped out into the warm dusk, cicadas buzzing, the faint scent of magnolia drifting on the breeze. At the massive oak doors, a butler opened with a nod as if they were expected royalty. A blast of chilled, floral-scented air met them, along with bass-heavy EDM pulsing just beneath the classical music piped through the ceiling speakers. Inside, the foyer swelled with light and the sound of clinking glasses and the laughter of guests in silks and pressed suits. A grand staircase arched above them like a theater curtain drawn back. Kaya could not feel more out of place.

Suddenly, the brother yelled from across the giant room. "Finally! The prodigal son returns! And he brought company!" He wore a black mock turtleneck tucked into designer joggers, paired with limited-edition sneakers that looked more like abstract sculptures. Around his neck, a thin gold chain with a tiny Bitcoin pendant swung like a charm. A chunky smartwatch blinked on his wrist, and a VR headset dangled from his belt like a trophy. He held a glass of something expensive but clearly hated the taste. He looked nothing like his brother. His grin was too wide, with teeth whitened to near-unnatural brilliance. That same boyish charm, still wrapped in the awkward bravado of someone who had been overlooked most of his life . . . until he became rich.

Michael gave a tight smile. "Good to see you too, Dave. Or should I say, crypto king of the Midwest?"

Dave laughed too hard, patting Michael's shoulder with exaggerated affection. "Guilty. What can I say? I believed early and held on longer."

He then turned to Kaya. "And you must be Kaya. A nurse, right? What are you doing with this boring old hack? "

Kaya smiled with practiced warmth. "He is pretty cool. I like that he is not trying to impress anyone. It's very sexy."

Dave chuckled and motioned for a server to come with drinks. "She is feisty, I like her."

As the drinks appeared, Dave clinked his glass against Michael and Kaya. "To reincarnation and reinvention! And to my big brother finally showing up at one of my birthdays instead of calling the next day with a sorry-ass excuse."

The couple hesitated and then raised their glasses.

Michael laughed awkwardly, "Well, my casa is your casa, so enjoy the party. Check out the pool. I just added a sick waterfall. I am going to say hi to some people and meet you there."

Michael nodded. "Cool, cool."

Kaya raised an eyebrow. "Too cool. It feels like a morgue in here."

Michael laughed. "Keeps the servers cool. He has a whole wing running mining rigs for fun. Passive income, baby. Let's go outside."

As the night progressed, Kaya grew increasingly nervous. Michael was about to tell her that they were going to leave when he received a bizarre text from his brother. No emoji, no punctuation, no usual flair. It's just sharp and direct, which was unsettling.

Come to my office now. Bring Kaya.

Michael stared at it for a bit too long.

"You okay?" Kaya asked, looking around nervously.

"Huh? yeah . . . David texted me to go to his office. Probably to show us some new stupid gaudy shit. So let's go, and then we can get out of here. I can't wait to snuggle with you on the couch."

She smiled but didn't say anything and followed him slowly.

Michael knocked on the office door, and he didn't even know why it was closed. Surprisingly, the door opened slightly, but his brother was not standing there. He pushed the door open and froze.

David was inside, cuffed, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. His turtleneck was torn, and his eyes widened as he saw Michael walk in.

"Come in," said a voice.

A man stepped into view from the shadows behind Michael. He held a matte-black pistol low at his side, casual but ready. Michael instinctively stepped back, but Kaya had already followed him in. She gasped as soon as she saw David and the gun in the man's hand.

"Both of you. Inside. Quietly."

Kaya shut the door behind them.

"What is going on here? What the hell is this?" Michael asked the man.

But the man ignored him and looked at David.

"I need the passkeys. I am going to give you one chance, and then I will start shooting your brother every minute."

Kaya screamed. "No!"

The man seemed taken aback by her scream, but he looked back at David.

"You have one minute starting now." The man looked at his watch and pressed a button on it.

David sat bound to his leather chair, his wrists chafing against the metal that cut into his skin. Panic gnawed at his insides as he struggled against the constraints, desperate to find a way out. His heart raced as he locked eyes with the man. Time felt like it was both flying and crawling simultaneously.

"You're not going to get away with this," David shot back, forcing defiance into his voice, though it trembled with fear. He needed to buy time to think, but the urgency of his situation was seizing him.

The assailant's lips curled into a predatory smile.

"30 seconds," he warned, tapping his wrist as if wearing an invisible watch, unbothered by David's words.

"DAVID, What are you doing?! Give him what he wants!" Michael screamed at his brother in frustration.

"Okay! Okay! It's in my safe behind that painting of the forest. The Code is 07.06.19.94."

"Open it." The man motioned for Michael to do it.

But Michael didn't move, so the man pointed the gun at him.

Kaya, who had been standing quietly, screamed again. "NOOO!"

The man pointed the gun at her and smiled. Michael immediately moved towards the painting.

"Atta boy. You love her, huh? . . . What a loser," and he laughed.

Michael opened the safe and backed away.

"Good boy." He turned his attention to Kaya. "Now, would you, sweetheart, get what's in the safe and hand it to me?"

"I will get it. Leave her alone." Michael interjected.

The man took a few steps towards Michael and held the gun directly to his head.

"I am getting tired of you. You're so dumb, you know that?"

"Leave him alone!" Kaya yelled.

"You are trying to be a big man, huh? Trying to protect her and shit? You think she loves you, you dumb fuck. She doesn't."

"STOP IT!" Kaya screamed.

"You can't be serious? You like this loser?!"

"He is not a loser! And I do like him!"

"Unbelievable!" the man grunted. "You are defending him?!"

Michael, confused and heart-racing, looked from one to the other.

"What the hell is going on?"

With tears in her eyes, Kaya stepped forward, placing herself between the two men. Her voice shook as she spoke, "This wasn't part of the plan. You were supposed to scare him, not humiliate him."

The man scoffed. "You caught feelings for this guy? He's a joke."

Michael stood frozen with every nerve in his body lit like exposed wire.

His chest rose and fell rapidly, as if his lungs couldn't decide whether to breathe or collapse entirely.

"You know him?" He asked.

His mind reeled, trying to stitch together the pieces. She had smiled at him this morning and made him coffee. Touched his hand like it meant something. They planned trips together. Was it all a lie?

Every kiss. Every whisper. Every moment they shared, now tainted by this unbearable truth: he was nothing but a pawn, a mark in some twisted and devilish scheme. Michael felt like throwing up.

Kaya turned to him, her eyes flooded with remorse.

"Michael, I . . . I didn't mean for it to go this far. At first, yes, it was just a setup. You were a way to get to David. But then I saw who you are. How kind and real you were. I regret it. I truly do."

The words stabbed deeper than the gun ever could. They were meant to comfort, but all Michael could feel was the icy punch of betrayal exploding in his gut. His stomach churned some more. He didn't know whether to scream, cry, or laugh at how grotesquely absurd this moment had become.

"You played me," he whispered, voice hollow, barely audible over the pounding in his ears. "You played me and I . . . I fell for you. I . ."

Michael couldn't talk anymore. Something inside him had gone very quiet as if the last flickering hope he'd been carrying about love and meaning had gone out for good.

"Go," Michael said. His voice was low, even. Empty. "Take her. Take whatever you want. Just leave."

But the man looked suspicious. "You're just letting us walk?"

Michael nodded. "I don't care anymore. I'm done."

"He's lying," the intruder muttered. "Kaya, you know he's going to call the cops. He just wants us gone. I'm going to finish this."

"No!" Kaya screamed, "HE IS NOT LYING! LOOK AT HIM! . THIS WAS A HORRIBLE IDEA! YOU LIED TO ME! YOU NEVER SAID ANYTHING ABOUT A GUN! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?"

The man didn't flinch.

"You're pathetic," he spat. "Both of you. He's going to call the police before we even leave here. You're my blood, and you picked a stranger over your brother?"

"I didn't pick anyone!" she cried. "I just wanted to stop this before it went too far. Before someone got killed."

"It's too late!" He leveled the gun at Michael's head, but Kaya lunged at him before he took the shot, and the gun fell from his hand. But he recovered it quickly as Kaya tried to tussle with him. With the back of his hand, he slapped her and then pushed her violently to the ground.

Then, without hesitation, Michael moved. It was just a second too late.

The blast echoed like the scream of a dying god. Kaya and David screamed as he stumbled backward, a crimson bloom spreading across his body. The man grabbed the tiny box from the open safe and ran out of the room and into the night as Michael collapsed into Kaya's arms. She held Michael, rocking slightly, his blood soaking into her clothes, into her skin. His hand clutched hers as she sobbed and locked eyes with him.

A few minutes later, Police officers and EMTs flooded the room. They cuffed Kaya as they lifted Michael onto a stretcher. His gaze was fixed on her as she stood there broken and alone.

A year later, Michael sat on a plastic chair behind a plexiglass divider. Kaya appeared in a jumpsuit on the other side with hair pulled back, paler than he remembered. He picked up the phone. She followed suit.

For a long moment, they just stared at each other through the glass, then he smiled and said, "Hi"