aple Street h

ll chimed softly whenever someone entered, and the small round tables were still too close

arrive

ecause it allowed him to see the street outside. He ordered black coff

lf he wasn't

pointment would

. Conversations overlapped. Laughter d

chimed o

inctively - and h

ust inside

s weren't tense. Her gaze wasn't searching. She wore simple clothes,

the room a

, neither of

over and sat a

h

reet

pre

ly, his voice quiet

she re

n them, but it wasn't

d the urge

after a moment. "I just want

ied. And he did - more

woman left, Ethan noticed his hands were trembling

ything," he said. "I'm not he

arching for something fam

ifferent,

," he a

her

"When I left, I wasn't

t now," he

continued. "And I was afraid that if I

oat tig

he said. "Or maybe.

. "That's

ed her hands around the cu

ck," she said calmly. "I

n. And this time, the wor

eyes, "I can sit here. I can t

- small, frag

than I dese

idn't

small moments of daily life. He listened more than he

o leave, he didn

for comin

dded. "Thank you for n

stayed seated, watching th

understood that love

as about learni

s before she realized

from

restr

eet steady her. Cars passed. Voices drifted from open shop doors. Lif

expect

ected was how close

pauses. The way he listened without interrupting. The way he

d her more than his pas

it fel

hoes and leaned against the door, eyes closed. Her ch

't erased the y

aled the qui

r that people could ch

frighte

up from the kitch

ed the quest

," she sai

answer without pressing. "Diffe

eed. "That's w

t, she opened h

invisible to

n't feel safe

ed, pen

be chosen only

t in his car long after s

't foll

e felt li

wheel, exhaling slowly. The meeting replayed

ed every

m in he

iness in

hrink or soften to m

t waiting

n hurt more than he

ing then, something

it wouldn't be bec

he had become someon

ending another message,

ayed

ut of

t of r

pas

essa

cal

ress

e, something une

issed

but the man she had glimpsed in that café

rself a litt

him didn't mea

asn't the sam

after the café,

a me

ar notif

Session

at it, hear

n't del

he would need help-not to fix her m

bbed he

n sat in a waitin

erapist. Dif

e g

an

for the first time, they were

ot tog