AmieZiel — A Incomplete Love Story

One evening, as the two stood on the balcony, Naaz asked casually,

"You saw him again, didn't you?"

Kiara flinched slightly and looked at her. "Whom?"

Naaz didn't meet her eyes. She just kept staring down at the road.

"Amie."

Kiara didn't say anything. Sometimes, silence says everything.

Naaz felt her reaction and then said,

"You can't hide anything from me. Just be careful. People are not always what they appear to be."

Kiara simply nodded a little in agreement, but her heart was wrestling with something entirely different.

"Don't hold yourself back because of me. If you want to talk to him, then do it."

Kiara looked at her, a faint surprise in her eyes.

Naaz was looking straight into her eyes now, and then she gently took both of Kiara's hands in hers.

"Don't look at me like that. You're wise. Maybe you're right... Maybe I do suspect everyone. You know what my past has made me. And maybe... maybe I'll never be able to trust anyone completely. But I don't want you to bury your feelings just because of me."

There was moisture in Kiara's eyes now. She held Naaz's hand a little tighter and said,

"I understand, Naaz. You're my family. It means a lot to me that you care... and yes, what happened with Uncle and Aunty, that pain is mine too. After everything you went through... you never cried. You never said anything. I know that... but how long will you keep everything bottled up inside?"

A faint trace of moisture touched Naaz's eyes, and with softness in her voice, she said—

"I... I can't, Kiara."

Kiara placed her hand gently on Naaz's shoulder.

"I understand. But just... think for a moment. What if Amie has also been through some kind of trauma?"

Naaz remained silent, but there was no longer that same hardness in her eyes.

Kiara smiled gently and said—

"Naaz... don't turn into stone. Sometimes, the world doesn't run on just what we see. Feel it... the people, their stories, and the real world hidden in their eyes. And as far as trouble is concerned..."

She looked into Naaz's eyes,

"If my sister is with me, then I can face any challenge."

Naaz began to soften. A cool, faint smile appeared on her lips.

Kiara extended her hand, and without another word, the two embraced.

It was a moment—a moment where the bond of sisterhood quietly began to heal some of their fears and doubts.

Then, with tear-wet lashes, Kiara offered a gentle smile.

"So... can I talk to him now?"

Naaz let out a soft laugh, held her hand,

and with an affectionate gesture, gave her a little push—as if to say yes.

Now, Kiara was waiting for Amie with growing impatience. She just wanted to see him—just once—so she could finally speak to him. At every small sound, her eyes instinctively darted toward the colony gate.

After hours of waiting, she finally saw Amie entering through the gate, and a wave of excitement surged through her. She almost started running toward him—took a few steps even—but then she stopped. Because in her mind, she had already built a thousand new dreams, ones that had no place in reality. And the truth was, they were not as close as she had let herself believe in her imagination.

In one quiet corner of the colony, there was a small bench. Kiara took a deep breath, steadied her emotions, and decided it would be better to just sit there.

From that spot, she could see Amie approaching, smoking a cigarette in one hand and holding some packed food in the other. His walk was just like always—slightly slow, slightly thoughtful.

As soon as he came closer, she stopped him with visible excitement in her voice.

"Hello, Amie."

Amie paused slightly. He looked at Kiara, a hint of surprise in his eyes.

"Oh! Hello,"

he replied with a faint smile. It was clear from his face that he was trying—once again—to remember her name.

For the first time, Amie was the one to take a step forward and ask:

"How are you? It's been quite a few days... I didn't see you around."

"Yeah... I was a bit busy. And... thinking about some things." Kiara hesitated a little, tucking her hair behind her ear as she spoke.

"Glad to hear that you're fine."

He then took a soft drag from his cigarette and kept his eyes fixed on the far side of the road, where people were walking by.

Kiara wasn't sure how to move the conversation forward.

"I've... been noticing you for the past few days. Just couldn't bring myself to talk."

"Yes! I noticed. Since that day, your behaviour has changed. Which is fine, and I can understand."

"Yes! I've been thinking about that for a long time, and I wanted to talk about it."

"Okay. So... let's talk."

He shifted slightly to the side of the bench, as if inviting her to sit. Kiara had been waiting for that moment. She sat down beside him, though an invisible distance still lingered between them.

"I was confused... and I still am," Kiara said, carefully choosing her words.

"What you said... that you're a thief... I don't know, I didn't understand what you meant by that. Were you joking, or were you trying to say something serious?"

Amie didn't respond for a moment. He took the last drag of his cigarette, crushed it underfoot, then leaned slightly to the side and said—

"All I can say is... whatever I said, there was truth in it."

Kiara looked at him. There was no guilt in his eyes—no restlessness either. Only a kind of truth, whole in itself.

"I just want to know... why did you do it?" she asked.

Amie took a deep breath. He looked up at the sky for a moment, then spoke with a strange calmness in his eyes—

"To be honest..."

"That was my profession. We were a group of two or three people—just small thefts here and there. Some money, some thrill... sometimes out of helplessness, sometimes out of habit."

He looked at Kiara, a tired smile playing on his lips, as if triggered by an old memory—

"But yes, the last time... we got caught. And everything fell apart."

"And now?"

"Have you thought about what comes next? Are you going to do it all again or..."

She paused for a moment, then let the full question come out—

"Have you left your profession behind, along with this city?"

"I haven't thought much about it yet," Amie replied, "but I'll try to be... something better."

He picked up the plastic bag he'd been holding, placed it on the bench, and while opening it said,

"Are you hungry?"

From a warm foil wrap, Amie pulled out a patty and extended it toward her.

"Here. Today's special—chef's leftover."

Kiara looked at him and, with a bit of hesitation, accepted the bread roll.

After taking a bite, she said,

"This is actually... tasty. Unexpectedly."

Amie looked at her with a light smile.

"Yeah, there's some kind of magic in Mr. Ray's hands."

Then, for a while, both of them just ate in silence. As if words weren't necessary.

"If there's anything else that's bothering you, you can share it with me. You know that, right?"

"There's nothing like that," he interrupted, gently gesturing with his hand to show there really wasn't anything.

Amie looked at her for a moment, then stood up.

"we need to go now."

As she stood up too, Kiara asked casually—

"Ok So... we will meet again, Bye Amie"

Amie gave a small smile. One that was neither a yes nor a no.

And then, with steady steps, she walked into the colony and disappeared.

Amie stood there for a moment, still looking at her back and curves as she walked away. Then he pulled out a cigarette packet... paused for a second... and once again began searching for comfort in that cloud of smoke.

He turned to head toward his home when, suddenly, three boys appeared in front of him, completely blocking his path.

One of them—the loudest—spoke in a mocking, sarcastic tone,

"Feeling pretty cozy these days, huh? You're new around here, right?"

Amie looked at him but replied casually,

"Excuse me?"

The second boy stepped forward. He had a lean build and anger burning in his eyes.

"Who was that girl?" he asked, darting his gaze to the side.

"You were talking to her, right? Planning to mess around or what?"

And without waiting for an answer, he reached out and pressed Amie's face with his hand, his fingers digging into the edges of his cheeks.

Amie quickly tried to push his hand away, but before he could, all three of them shoved him hard, slamming him against the wall on the side. His back hit the surface with force.

"Stay away from that girl... or we'll smash your face in," the third boy leaned in and threatened right next to Amie's ear.

Amie stared straight into his eyes without flinching.

"She's your sister or something?" he asked, completely unfazed.

That line sent the smallest one into a frenzy. Furious, he landed a heavy punch right on Amie's cheekbone, followed by another at the corner of his lips. Amie tried to steady himself, but blood had already started dripping from his face—his lip was split, and blood flowed from his nose.

But Amie didn't lower his gaze.

He wiped the blood from his face with his palm, shook off the sting, and said—

"Oh, now I get it! — You like her."

He looked down at the blood smeared across the lines of his palm and gave a dry, hollow laugh.

The boy grabbed Amie by the collar and yanked him closer.

"I better not see you with her again."

Amie looked straight into his eyes, fearless.

"I see. You've got guts. You can beat me."

"But do you really have guts? Well... I doubt it," he added, his voice calm, almost taunting, as if the fear had switched sides.

"Shut the hell up!" the third boy snarled, growling like an animal, and slammed a punch into Amie's stomach. Amie bent forward in pain, but even then, his eyes remained steady—still locked on them.

"You don't even have the courage to speak to that girl," he said, voice tight with pressure, "so where did you suddenly find the guts to hit me?"

Just then, Kiara, driven by her growing restlessness, stepped out onto her balcony, hoping to catch a glimpse of Amie. But this time, what she saw froze her in place—Amie surrounded by those boys, on the ground.

She shouted from the balcony, panic rising in her voice, though she couldn't clearly see what was happening in the dim light. The boys hadn't moved, and the street was cloaked in shadows.

"Amie! Is everything alright?" she shouted again, her voice echoing through the quiet night.

The boys immediately looked up. By then, Naaz had joined Kiara on the balcony.

They quickly let go of Amie, straightening their clothes and fixing their appearance.

Amie, too, pushed them off with a jolt and called back toward the balcony—

"Yeah! Everything's fine."

At that moment, the most aggressive of the boys said while walking away,

"You talk big about guts, huh? I'm MoneyBro's younger brother. I'll show you what real guts look like later."

And with that, the three disappeared into the dark, their laughter and voices fading into the night.

Amie stood there, wiping the blood from his lip with the corner of his shirt. There was no fear in his eyes, no guilt—just a quiet exhaustion.

He started walking toward his house.

From the balcony, Kiara and Naaz watched as Amie emerged from the shadows into the light.

"I think he's hurt," Naaz said softly to Kiara.

"You wait. I'll go check on him!" Kiara said almost without thinking.

From behind, Naaz called out, "I'll come too."

But Kiara had already hurried down the stairs in a rush.

Naaz let out a deep breath and began searching the room for a first-aid kit.