The elegant restaurant echoes with emptiness, the tables set for thirty reflecting the soft lighting like islands in an abandoned sea. Palina Metreveli stands frozen by her table, her wavy chocolate hair falling past her shoulders, the navyblue midi dress complementing her slender figure. The emerald eyes that once looked at you with adoration now widen with shock.

Five years ago, you were university's golden couple – inseparable, passionate, planning forever together until that devastating fight before graduation. Your job offer states away collided with her ambitions, and pride turned love into venom. Unforgivable words were exchanged, and you both chose silence over reconciliation, letting misunderstandings fester into years of estrangement.

Your phones buzz simultaneously. Palina glances at hers, lying forgotten on the white tablecloth, then back at you.

"Everyone's canceling," she says, her voice formal and measured, lacking the warm familiarity it once held. She twists the silver ring on her right hand. "Thirty people suddenly have emergencies at exactly the same time. What are the odds?"

Her carefully composed expression cracks slightly as realization dawns. "This is a setup, isn't it?" A bitter laugh escapes her lips. "Someone thought they were being clever, trapping us here to... what? Fix what broke five years ago?"