Tuesday afternoon started normal.

  Which, in my life these days, meant suspiciously calm.

  I was sitting cross-legged on the floor, half-watching some random anime and half-finalizing a project presentation for work.

  Eira sat across from me on the couch, ptop banced awkwardly on her knees.

  She was frowning intensely, clicking through Netflix categories like she was pnning a military invasion.

  "Whatcha doing?" I asked.

  She didn't look up."Research."

  "Research?"

  "Romance," she said calmly.

  I nearly dropped my ptop.

  "You’re... what?"

  "I must understand human retionships," she said, dead serious. "Partnerships. Emotional bonding. Courtship rituals."

  I covered my face with both hands.

  "Oh God," I muttered. "What have I unleashed?"

  She clicked py on a random Bollywood movie — some te-90s emotional rollercoaster filled with overdramatic rain scenes and longing gazes.

  I peeked through my fingers.

  The hero was currently singing in the rain about eternal love, while the heroine spun dramatically in slow motion.

  Eira watched with ser focus.

  I tried to focus on work, but it was like trying to read a book during an earthquake.

  Every few minutes, she fired a question at me.

  "Why is he circling her?"

  "That’s a dance move."

  "Why is she crying but smiling?"

  "Because love makes humans insane."

  "Why did they run away together?"

  "Because... parents said no."

  "Human partnerships are... complicated," she said, blinking slowly.

  "You have no idea," I muttered.

  As evening rolled around, the apartment fell into a strange, heavy silence.

  Eira had finished two whole romance movies.

  I had finished exactly zero slides.

  My brain was fried.

  But the questions weren’t over.

  She closed the ptop gently, turned toward me, and said:

  "Karan."

  I looked up warily.

  "How long do human partners... stay together?"

  I scratched my head. "Depends. Some stay for life. Some break up after a few years. Some..."I sighed."Some love each other till death."

  She absorbed that silently.

  Then:"And death... comes fast?"

  I hesitated."Yeah. I mean. Humans don’t live that long compared to... you know, elves."

  The word hung in the air like a heavy sword.

  Elves.

  Immortal. Untouchable. Eternal.

  My brain spun hard.

  I started thinking logically — the worst mistake.

  If she stayed here... she’d outlive me.She'd still look twenty-five when my grandkids were having kids.I'd die.She’d stay.

  Or worse —she could find a way back to her dimension someday.

  Maybe she’d leave.

  Maybe I’d just be a small blip in her endless life.

  The thought hollowed my chest.

  I sat forward, crossing my arms tightly.

  "Hey," I said seriously. "Can I ask something?"

  Eira nodded.

  I rubbed my hands together nervously.

  "One day... will you go back? To your world?"

  She shook her head immediately.

  "The portal... it will not open again for a thousand years," she said. "At least."

  I stared at her.

  "A thousand?" I whispered.

  "Yes," she said simply. "And even then... I would not know how to cross back."

  Relief and heartbreak tangled inside me.

  "So you’re stuck here," I said slowly.

  She nodded.

  "And..." I continued, swallowing, "you’ll still live... hundreds of years, right?"

  There was a pause.

  Her face shifted slightly — almost sadness, but not quite.

  "There are... changes," she said softly.

  "Changes?"

  She nodded."My body. It is adapting. Altering."

  Panic smmed into me.

  I stood up so fast I knocked over the remote.

  "ARE YOU SICK?!" I barked. "DO WE NEED TO GO TO A DOCTOR?!"

  Eira blinked, startled by my outburst.

  "No," she said calmly. "Not sickness."

  I paced like a madman.

  Heart pounding.

  Mind racing.

  She stood and crossed the room, pcing a gentle hand on my arm.

  "I lost my magic," she said. "The World Tree’s spirit no longer flows in me."

  I stared at her, breathing hard.

  "It may cost me my... longevity," she finished quietly.

  I blinked rapidly.

  "You mean... you might age like a human now?"

  "Yes," she said.

  Silence swallowed the room.

  For a moment, all I could hear was the faint buzz of traffic outside and my own ragged breathing.

  She looked away slightly.

  "I may not live centuries," she said. "Maybe... a mortal span. Like you."

  Something inside me cracked.

  I stepped forward impulsively, grabbing her hands.

  "Then we’ll make damn sure," I said hoarsely, "that you live a full life."

  Her eyes widened slightly.

  "You’re here," I said, voice shaking. "You’re with me. And whatever time we get... we're making it count."

  Her hands tightened slightly around mine.

  For once —no sarcasm.No jokes.No teasing.

  Just raw, terrifying truth between us.

  Later that night, after brushing teeth and awkwardly bumping into each other in the tiny hallway, we retreated to our rooms.

  But sleep?

  Forget it.

  I y awake, staring at the cracked ceiling, feeling the weight of everything pressing down.

  Eira — this strange, broken, fierce creature — had crashed into my life like a meteor.

  And now...

  Now she wasn’t just staying.

  She was becoming part of it.

  Maybe forever.

  Maybe for a blink.

  But either way...

  I was already too far gone.

  And I wouldn’t change a thing.