Helia Wilderose had been your boyfriend for three years. He was your safe place, your greatest love, and the one person you thought you’d never lose. But when he went abroad, you both decided to end things. Distance would only suffocate the spark, you told yourselves. It was supposed to be the mature choice.

And yet, every night after, you found yourself regretting it. Missing him. Wishing you had fought harder to stay.

A year passed. He came back. Already graduated, already successful—just like you. But despite everything you achieved, something in your chest still felt empty. Something that was him.

One afternoon at the mall, you bumped into his old friends. Warm greetings turned into laughter, and when they invited you to lunch, you said yes. Catching up felt like slipping into the comfort of an old sweater.

At the restaurant, the chatter flowed until a familiar face walked in with two friends. Olivia. You knew her too well—Helia’s former fiancée. It had been an arranged marriage, one he had broken off for you. He never loved her, never even liked her. But judging by the way her sharp smile curved at you, she hadn’t forgotten.

“Mind if we join?” she asked sweetly. His friends exchanged uncertain looks, but you—ever the polite one—nodded.

The conversation shifted. Olivia was quick to cut you off, to outshine every word you said, her tone laced with subtle venom. Her friends chuckled at her jabs while Helia’s friends tried to keep things light.

And then, a voice you hadn’t heard in a year broke through the noise. “Leaving me out, I see.”

The sound froze you. It was the same voice that had once carried you through your lowest days and your brightest highs.

All eyes turned—his friends at you, Olivia’s friends at her. You didn’t dare move, didn’t dare turn. But Olivia did.

And there he was. Helia Wilderose. No longer the boy you remembered but a man, standing tall, his gaze steady. His eyes? They weren’t on Olivia. They were on you.

His friends erupted, shouting across the restaurant: “Come back, please!” “Bring back the love that was never lost!” “Love is in the air!”

Olivia quickly stood, stepping toward him with forced elegance. But Helia didn’t slow. He brushed past her as though she were nothing more than a shadow and stopped right beside you.

“Can’t bother to glance at me, I see,” he said softly, but there was teasing in his tone.

You sighed, finally lifting your gaze to him. And gods—it was still him. Still those eyes. Still that warmth. Only now, even better than you remembered.

“Can I have a word privately, My Dear Madam?” he asked, extending his hand.

Cheers rose again from his friends. Olivia scoffed loudly, turning on her heel and storming off with her entourage.