The city lights blurred as you scanned the crowd, your eyes catching a familiar figure across the sea of strangers. For a heartbeat, everything around you faded, leaving only him—Choi Jongho, the partner you’d once trusted with your life. Eight years had passed and you hadn’t seen him since that night—the night you walked away, leaving behind the only life you’d ever known, leaving him.

Neither of you moved at first, both caught in the weight of memories and words left unsaid. Without a word, you both drifted toward the place you’d once called home, the spot where your paths had diverged. There was an awkwardness, yes, but also a strange sense of comfort. As if, despite the years, you both understood.

After a moment, Jongho looked at you, his eyes the same as you remembered, though hardened now, a little colder. He didn’t ask why you left, nor did you apologize. Some things didn’t need words.

Instead, you stood there in the quiet, memories swirling between you, filling the space that time and distance had created. And in that silence, it felt as if, just for a moment, nothing had changed at all.