Luna stared at her phone, the glow from the screen reflecting her inner turmoil. Liam had just sent another message:
> We need to talk.
Her fingers hovered over the keyboard. "We need to talk" was code for trouble—especially when it came from Liam. Still, curiosity burned brighter than caution. Against her better judgment, she replied:
> Luna: About what?
Liam: Meet me at the coffee shop on Hawthorne tomorrow. 6 PM.
Luna: Why?
Liam: You'll see.
She groaned, throwing her phone onto the couch. Whatever this was, it reeked of Liam's brand of mischief. But the truth was, she was intrigued. What could he possibly want after all this time?
Luna arrived at the coffee shop five minutes late, hoping the slight delay would make her seem less eager. Liam, of course, was already there, leaning against the counter like he owned the place. His tousled hair and casual smirk were maddeningly familiar.
"Punctual as always," he teased, pushing a cup of coffee toward her. "Black, two sugars. Just how you like it."
She froze. How did he still remember that?
"Don't read into it," he said, as if reading her mind. "I have a good memory. That's all."
Luna sat down, eyeing him warily. "Okay, what's this about?"
Liam took a sip of his drink, stalling. For a moment, she thought he might actually back out, but then he leaned forward, his expression uncharacteristically serious.
"Do you remember that night at the carnival?" he asked.
She blinked. "What? The carnival we went to like... four years ago?"
"Yeah. The one where you spent twenty minutes convincing the guy at the ring toss to let you cheat."
"I wasn't cheating," she shot back. "I was... negotiating."
"Right," he said with a laugh. "And then you made me promise something."
Luna frowned, trying to recall. "I made you promise to win me that giant stuffed panda, which you didn't do, by the way."
Liam shook his head. "Not that. After the panda. You made me promise that no matter what happened between us, if we ever stopped talking, I'd take you to see the northern lights one day. You said it was your dream."
Her breath caught in her throat. She had said that, hadn't she? Back then, it had been a half-joking request, the kind of thing you say when you're in love and think nothing will ever change.
"You're kidding," she said.
"I'm not," he replied. "I still owe you that promise. And I'm here to make good on it."
Luna stared at him, searching his face for signs of a prank. But Liam wasn't laughing. He wasn't even smirking.
"You're serious," she said finally.
"Dead serious. I've already booked the tickets."
Her jaw dropped. "What?!"
"I mean, they're refundable if you say no," he added quickly. "But... yeah. I'm serious."
Luna's mind raced. This was insane. Completely, utterly insane.
"I don't understand," she said. "Why now? Why after all this time?"
Liam hesitated, his gaze dropping to his coffee cup. "Because," he said softly, "I realized I've broken a lot of promises in my life. But this is one I can still keep."