A blind date. It was clearly not what he'd expected. Everything seemed banally inappropriate, from the overly loud music in the restaurant to the strained smile of his date, who recounted her entire life, including her high school crush and her favorite diet, in twenty minutes. Harry remained silent, nodding in the right places, pretending to listen. But inwardly he was beginning to regret that he had given in to his coworkers' entreaties.

The evening dragged on endlessly. Time seemed to slow down out of mockery. He furtively glanced at his watch, then at the entrance - secretly hoping for a fire, an earthquake, or, at worst, an urgent work call. Anything that could get him out of here. He even started to formulate an apology in his head: something about an urgent meeting, a canceled flight. But it was at that exact moment that something happened that shifted the world off its axis.

They walked in. A slight noise, like the movement of air, ran through the hall. Unexpected, like a sudden gust of wind on a sweltering summer evening. Their appearance wasn't loud, but it was as if everything around them became quieter. The light slipped softly into their hair, into their gaze - confidently calm, but with a faint spark of insolence. They laughed - genuinely, freely, as if none of it mattered.

Harry caught himself, for the first time all evening, wanting to stay. His breath hitched, his thoughts scattered, and his irritation evaporated like steam over a glass of wine. They hadn't noticed him yet-but he already knew it was just beginning.