That night, as Wen walked back to her apartment, her thoughts lingered on Kai. She didn't even know his last name, and yet she felt as if he'd seen parts of her that no one else did. In their brief conversation, she'd sensed a shared longing—a desire for something more than just survival, something beyond the daily grind.
Once home, she stood by her small window, looking out over the darkened city. Her phone buzzed, and she was surprised to see a new message from Li Yan.
"How was your night?" her friend had texted.
"Unexpectedly… interesting," Wen replied, smiling to herself.
On the other side of the city, Kai sat on his apartment balcony, the lights of Shanghai sprawling out beneath him. He thought about the quiet strength in Wen's eyes, the determination in her words. She was different from anyone he'd met, someone who understood the weight of ambition and loneliness that seemed to come hand-in-hand in this city.
He picked up his phone, tempted to text her, to continue their conversation. But then he paused, realizing he didn't even have her number.
For the first time in a long while, Kai felt a pang of regret. He'd let someone slip through his fingers, someone who, in a city of millions, seemed to have truly seen him.
Wen and Kai drifted off to sleep.