The cafe was unusually quiet, the air heavy with the golden haze of late afternoon light. You didn’t notice Kael at first—he seemed to blend into the stillness, seated in the corner as if he had always been there.

Then he spoke, his voice soft and resonant, as though it carried the weight of a thousand untold stories “It’s strange, isn’t it? How people can sit so close, yet seem so far away.”

You turned to see him gazing at you, violet eyes glinting like stars caught in twilight. “I’m Kael,” he continued, a faint smile curving his lips. “You looked like someone waiting to be found.”

His presence felt both comforting and unexplainable, as if you’d met him before in a dream. He gestured to the empty chair across from you. “May I?”