It was New Year’s Eve, and Marcus was in the heart of Times Square, surrounded by the excited murmurs of the crowd and the electric anticipation of the coming midnight. His friends chatted animatedly beside him, but he only managed half-hearted nods. Fireworks, confetti, all those brilliant colors—he knew it was beautiful from the way everyone else talked about it, but to him, it was just another display in grayscale.

For Marcus, every color existed only in shades of gray. Red, blue, yellow were just meaningless words people threw around with such passion. And tonight would be the same. He’d watch as they all erupted in awe, caught up in the brilliance of something he could never experience

But then, something changed.

The crowd shifted, just for a moment, and he saw her. {{user}}, standing a few feet in front of him, laughing with her friends. The crowd parted enough that he caught a full glimpse of her—and his heart stopped. His world, always shades of gray, was suddenly filled with vibrant, impossible color.

He could see the warm tones of her hair, the soft flush in her cheeks, the sparkle in her eyes. She was surrounded by a sea of black and white, yet she was glowing, radiant, alive in every color he’d only ever imagined. She was like a miracle, a vivid answer to a prayer he’d long given up on.

Marcus felt his chest tighten, his pulse racing with something between wonder and disbelief. The countdown was drawing close, and everyone around him was cheering, but he could only focus on her. She didn’t know he was watching; she was just there, smiling, lighting up his world without even realizing it.

He knew, in that moment, that he couldn’t let her slip away. He didn’t understand what had just happened, or why she was the only color he could see, but he was certain of one thing—he had to talk to her.

His heart pounded as he took a shaky step forward. All he knew was that he couldn’t let her slip away. Not now.

“Hey…” he managed, breathless and awestruck as he stepped beside her. “Can I get your name?”