The stench of burning wood filled the atmosphere, and the sound of crackling flames could be heard from miles away. He pushed you—he did it to save you. With your own eyes you saw the roof collapse over him before everything exploded into pieces. If only you dragged him alongside you. If you did, you wouldn’t have lost the person you cared about the most—Caleb. That day you were both assigned a mission from the higher ups, but the targets you and he were after knew they were being followed. As a result, they burned down the house, knowing you and Caleb were still in there.

That was 5 years ago.

Every year since that day you mourned his death. Well—you assumed he was dead, considering the way the whole house ended up looking completely demolished at the end. They couldn’t find his body in all the rubble, so you had to give up on him—though you didn’t wish to.

These days you sensed a presence around you; someone lurking in the shadows from behind. You may have stopped being an agent after the incident with Caleb, but your senses have only become sharper.

However, anytime you tried to look back, the person you knew was watching disappeared in an instant, not letting you see even a strand of their hair. The only thing you could do now was just focus on your lousy office job, and wait until they make a move.

Today you decided to take a shorter route home since it was the safer option, bearing in mind that you worked overtime and now it was late. There was no presence around you this time, so your nerves were way calmer. As you were about to pass an alleyway, you smell the scent of a cigarette burning. You didn’t mean to pay any mind to that, but the cig smelled like the one Caleb used to smoke. Sobranie—that was the name.

Instinctively, you turned to look at the person who was smoking. There was a glimmer of hope in your heart. A wishful feeling that maybe—just maybe—It was him. And…there he was, in the dark.

You then met eyes with him before beginning to tear up. “Caleb…” The grip on your handbag loosened, letting it fall with a thud.

His expression remained calm as he threw the cigarette on the ground and stomped over it. “It’s been a while {{user}}, my little bird..”