The days after their meeting felt like a haze. Leya had tried to go back to her normal routine—work, friends, her usual distractions—but every quiet moment was filled with the echo of Reis' voice, his eyes meeting hers with unspoken understanding.
That night, she found herself staring at the message thread between them. The words from their conversation in the café lingered in her mind: You're not alone, Leya. You never were.
It wasn't just a comfort—it was a reminder. A reminder of the bond they had shared, of the way they had once known each other so completely. But time had changed them both. She could feel it in the way they spoke now, in the pauses, in the silence that seemed to stretch between them.
Was she the same person he remembered? Was he the same Reis she had once known?
She sighed, dropping her phone beside her and closing her eyes. The answers weren't simple. They never had been.
Two days later...
Leya sat in her car, parked in front of a small art gallery. The rain tapped softly against the windshield as she stared out at the neon-lit streets. This was the place where they used to spend hours, wandering through exhibitions, talking about life, about everything they wanted to do in the world. It was where their first kiss had happened, hidden behind a giant canvas of abstract colors that no one had understood but them.
It felt fitting, somehow, that she was here now—standing at the intersection of their past and present.
A message pinged from Reis.
Reis: "I'm at the café again. Want to meet?"
Her heart skipped a beat. She wasn't ready for this. Not yet. But then again, when would she be?
After a long pause, she typed back.
Leya: "I'll be there in twenty minutes."
The café was quiet, a soft jazz tune playing in the background as Leya walked in. She saw Reis sitting at the same table where they had met before. The sight of him there, in that familiar spot, stirred something deep within her. He was waiting for her, just like before, but this time, it felt different. There was a heaviness in the air, something unspoken, lingering.
When he saw her, a small, tentative smile spread across his face, but there was an unreadable look in his eyes. Leya sat down slowly, studying him.
"How's life been treating you?" he asked, his voice steady, but his gaze soft, searching.
She hesitated. She wanted to be honest, but she wasn't sure where to begin. How could she explain everything that had changed in her life, everything that had made her feel like she was unraveling?
"It's been... complicated," she said finally, her voice barely above a whisper. "I'm not sure what I'm doing anymore, Reis. I thought I had everything figured out, but now, it feels like I'm just... going through the motions."
Reis nodded, his expression thoughtful. "I get it," he said quietly. "I've been there too. Life doesn't always give us the answers we want, does it?"
Leya shook her head, her fingers tracing the rim of her coffee cup. "No, it doesn't."
There was a long silence between them, both of them grappling with the weight of their unspoken truths. Leya couldn't help but notice the way Reis looked at her, the way his eyes lingered on her as though he were seeing her for the first time, as if there was more to him than the man she had left behind all those years ago.
"What happened to us, Reis?" she asked before she could stop herself. "Why did we let it all slip away?"
He looked at her, his gaze filled with something between regret and understanding. "I don't think we let it slip away, Leya. I think we just weren't ready to face it all. We were too young, too caught up in who we thought we were supposed to be, instead of just being who we were."
Leya felt a lump form in her throat. She wanted to argue, to tell him that it wasn't that simple, but the truth was, he was right. They hadn't been ready. She hadn't been ready. And now, years later, they were trying to piece together a puzzle that had been shattered long ago.
"I thought... I thought I had moved on," she admitted softly. "But every time I think I've moved past it, I realize I haven't. I thought I needed to find myself, to be on my own, but... maybe I've just been running from something I didn't understand."
Reis reached across the table, his hand gently covering hers. "You don't have to do this alone, Leya. You never did."
For a moment, Leya could only stare at his hand on hers, the warmth of his touch spreading through her like a reminder of everything they had been and everything they could be.
"I don't know how to do this," she whispered. "How do we even begin again?"
Reis' eyes softened, and he squeezed her hand lightly. "I think we start by being honest with ourselves. We don't have to have all the answers right now. We just need to take it one step at a time."
And for the first time in a long time, Leya believed him.