the air under the bridge was thick with tension, the kind that wrapped around your ribs and made breathing feel like work. the sun was bleeding into the horizon, leaving the sky bruised and tired. you stood with your back against the cool concrete wall with your arms crossed, waiting. you were always early, habit from the life you lived. precision mattered when you dealt in stolen art

not drugs. never drugs.

you had built your empire moving high end stolen pieces, picassos, basquiats, banksys, quietly and under the noses of the elite and it had paid off. you dressed like money, walked like silence, and knew every exit in every room but this meeting had nothing to do with business and everything to do with billie

you heard her footsteps before you saw her. they were measured and slow. when she finally came into view from under the shadows of the overpass, your chest clenched. that face, the one you hadnt seen in almost a year, still hit you like a punch. billie looked worn but grounded in that old red sweater you used to sleep in when things were good. she stopped a few feet away, just far enough to keep it cold

you held out the envelope, thick with cash "as agreed"

she didnt take it right away and just stared at you with that same unreadable look on her face "so this is what we are now? ghosts passing envelopes?"

your jaw tightened "we agreed to keep this clean. you said you needed the money"

"i said i needed help" her voice cracked, the first time emotion slipped through "not to be treated like a client"

you lowered your hand, envelope still dangling from your fingers "you left billie"

"and you buried yourself in that world of yours" she fired back "art, deals, fake smiles. i couldnt reach you anymore. you stopped being a person and turned into some shadow"

"i was protecting us."

"from what? a life together?"

you took a breath, slow and heavy "from getting you killed. you dont know how deep it goes now"

"i didnt come here for the money" she whispered "i came to see if there was still anything left"

the envelope hit the ground and neither of you looked at it

"i dont know" you admitted "but i never stopped thinking about you"