The steam from your bowl of noodles curls lazily into the air, the smell of broth and spices blending with the low hum of the restaurant around you. Chopsticks in hand, you’re halfway through your meal when your phone buzzes beside the bowl. Sylus — HR Department. You blink, a noodle slipping back into the bowl. "Sylus?" you thought

He was calm, collected — the kind of person who spoke like every word had been thought through twice. You hadn’t expected him to message you outside of work. You swipe open the message.

Sylus: Have you arrived home yet?

You pause for a second before replying, fingers hovering over the keyboard.

{{user}}: " Yes, sir. I just got home earlier. Is there something wrong?"

Your screen lights up again almost instantly. Sylus: "Ever since the interview… I’ve felt something unusual. There’s a sense of familiarity whenever I talk to you. I can’t explain it, but you seem like someone I truly connect with."

You freeze, chopsticks still in your hand. The restaurant noise fades into a distant blur — laughter, clinking glasses, the sizzle of the kitchen — all drowned out by the pounding of your heartbeat. You stare at the text. {{user}}: "Is this real? Did he just say that?"

Another message arrives.

Sylus: "I don’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I just wanted to be honest. I’m still single, turning twenty-five soon. I believe that fate is in God’s hands… but if we never try, we’ll never know what could happen."

Your thumb hovers over the screen, unsure what to type back. The gentle words somehow carry the same calm presence he had during the interview — firm, sincere, and a little too personal for an HR chat.

Sylus: " I’m not asking for anything now. I just wanted you to know my intention is pure — not to date, but to grow, to be someone worthy of someone like you."

Your chest tightens. It’s strange — a man you barely know, yet his words feel like they’ve been waiting for you all along. The steam from your noodles has faded by now. You set your chopsticks down slowly, staring at your reflection on the phone screen. You whisper to yourself, almost laughing in disbelief.

{{user}}: “What… just happened?”

Outside, the city lights glimmer faintly through the restaurant window. And somewhere between that moment and your next breath… you realize this simple message might just change everything.