The rain had stopped, but the air still trembled with what had just happened. Lightning no longer danced across the sky, but something more powerful had been unleashed — a choice. Zayan had pressed the override. The recall was stopped — for now. But Andaleeb's body was still weak, her glow dimming with each moment. Her powers had dulled. She was silent in his arms, barely holding onto the fragments of her strength.
Zayan scooped her up without a word, holding her like she would shatter if he let go. "You're coming with me," he said firmly.
"I'm fine—" she tried to whisper.
"You're not. And don't argue with me."
She didn't. Her head rested on his chest, listening to the thunder of his heart, loud and erratic — as if it was beating for the both of them now. She closed her eyes. Just for a moment. Just to feel this.
---
**🏡 Zayan's Apartment – Midnight**
The apartment was dim, soft shadows stretching along the walls. Zayan placed her gently on the couch, his movements uncharacteristically careful. He draped a blanket over her small frame, tucking the edges in. She looked like she was barely tethered to this world.
Andaleeb tried to sit up, but her head spun. Her balance was gone. Her energy, too.
Zayan returned moments later with a steaming cup. He crouched before her. "It's not that… alien coffee you like, but it's warm."
She smiled faintly, her hands trembling as she took it. "Tea is good. Reminds me of Earth."
He sat across from her at first, but the silence between them felt unbearable. That distance. That gap. It had never mattered more than it did now. So he moved beside her. She leaned her head on his shoulder again — just like she had before. But this time, it felt… fragile. Like a goodbye dressed in comfort.
"You've been quiet," he murmured.
"I'm scared," she admitted.
"Of what?"
"That this is the last time I'll get to feel this." She gently squeezed his arm. "You."
Zayan turned to face her, his jaw tense. "Then stay. I won't let them take you."
"You can't fight the laws of the galaxy."
He gave a crooked, bitter smile. "Watch me try."
---
**💔 The Argument — but with Love**
"Andaleeb… you should've told me everything."
She swallowed hard. "I was afraid. Afraid you'd hate me. That you'd think I was lying. That I'm a monster."
He cupped her face, gently turning her chin toward him. "You're not a monster. You're my chaos. My storm. And my calm."
She laughed, a soft broken sound. "That makes no sense."
"It makes perfect sense to me."
Tears shimmered in her eyes. "I love you, Zayan."
The words lingered between them like a comet trail — beautiful, fast, and maybe fleeting.
"I've loved you since you scolded me on my first day."
He chuckled. "That was the worst coffee I ever tasted."
"You still drank it."
"I regretted it for a week."
They both laughed — brief, a flare of light in the dark.
Then silence settled again, heavier than before.
---
**⚡ Power Surge — Her Weakening Grows**
Suddenly, the pendant on her neck flickered violently. Andaleeb gasped and clutched her chest, her body jerking slightly.
Zayan jumped to his feet. "What's happening?"
She was shaking, her breath ragged. "It's… getting worse. My body's losing sync with Earth's frequency. The longer I stay, the more unstable I become."
"No," Zayan said. His voice was steel. "You're not going anywhere."
"Zayan—"
He knelt beside her, gripping her shoulders. "No. I won't let you disappear. You hear me? I'll shut down every satellite if I have to. I'll rip their technology apart with my bare hands."
Tears slipped from her eyes. "You can't win against a galaxy, Zayan."
"I don't care. I'm not letting you go. Not like this."
---
**🧬 Meanwhile – Secret Facility | Aleena's Trap Begins**
In the top floor of a sterile glass tower, Aleena Hashmi sat with a predatory calm. Her long fingers tapped on the holographic screen before her, pausing on a grainy video feed.
Zayan. And the girl beside him.
No — the alien.
"So the little intern is not even human…" she muttered, her lips curling into a sinister smile.
She pressed a button on the sleek black console.
"Initiate Project Lockdown. I want her scanned. Tracked. No more hiding."
"Yes, ma'am," a voice replied.
"Zayan's heart may be blind," she said softly. "But mine isn't."
---
**🕯️ Back to Zayan's Apartment – Softness in the Dark**
A sudden flicker. The lights went out.
A blackout.
Zayan reached into a drawer and lit a candle. Its warm flame painted the room in golden shadows.
Andaleeb stared at the flame, mesmerized. "You know… where I'm from, there's no fire. We don't need it. We evolved past it. Everything is cold efficiency."
Zayan stared at her face in the flickering light. "But you love Earth."
"I do. It's loud, messy… chaotic. But beautiful."
"Like you," he whispered.
She blushed faintly, her cheeks glowing ever so slightly.
"Sleep here tonight," he said.
"I might flicker again—"
"Then I'll hold you through every flicker."
He pulled her closer. Their foreheads touched. The candlelight danced between them.
---
**🛌 Night – Warmth and Fear**
She lay curled in his bed, her body tucked into his chest like it had always belonged there. Zayan didn't sleep. He watched her breathe, memorizing every rise and fall, every line of her face. As if staring long enough would stop time itself.
She murmured in her sleep. A word he couldn't recognize.
"Don't go," he whispered. "Stay. Please."
---
**📡 Last Scene: Satellite Reactivation**
High above Earth, satellites realigned. A signal pulsed.
The spaceship was delayed, not denied. Its systems had rebooted. Coordinates locked. A countdown began.
4 days left.
Andaleeb's pendant flickered again — softer this time.
Zayan didn't notice.
But fate was ticking.
And Luna, watching through the celestial mirror from beyond the stars, closed her eyes.
*"Four days," she whispered. "Choose well, child of starlight. Love is your only map."*