The Sky He Gave Me

She used to count heartbeats. Not in seconds. In silences. In the stillness between rain and thunder. In the way people paused after saying goodbye. In the way the stars blinked like they were remembering something too far away. She had a fragile heart — everyone reminded her. Doctors, nurses, relatives, calendars. Like it was her name. The Girl Who Might Not Make It Past Twenty. But she never feared dying. What she feared… was not living before it came. She never imagined she'd meet a boy who feared the opposite. He didn't talk about his past. Didn't like birthdays or candles. Said love was too loud for someone like him. But when he looked at her — quiet, cracked, careful — he smiled like he finally believed in tomorrow. They were opposites. She counted heartbeats. He tried to ignore his. And yet… somehow, they met. Somehow, they stitched their wounds into one story. A story that was never meant to last. But this isn't just a story about endings. It's about the kind of love that lives on. Even when one of them doesn't. This is how it all began— With a boy who had no one to give his heart to. And a girl who never thought she'd have the chance to keep one.