The rain had been falling for hours by the time Michael Dunn reached her building, soaking through his coat and dripping from the ends of his hair. He barely noticed the cold. His chest felt tight, every breath shallow, as he stared up at the familiar brick façade like it might disappear if he looked away for too long. A year had passed since he last stood here, yet the place looked exactly the same, painfully untouched by the time that had nearly broken him.

He climbed the stairs slowly, water trailing behind him, heart pounding harder with every step. He had faced investors, failures, and sleepless nights without flinching, but this—standing outside her door—terrified him in a way nothing else ever had. Because this was the only thing in his life he couldn’t fix with effort or intelligence.

Her.

He stopped in front of apartment 4B and swallowed hard. For a moment, doubt crept in. What if she had moved on? What if he was too late? The thought made his chest ache so sharply he pressed a hand against it, trying to steady himself. But love, stubborn and relentless, pushed him forward anyway.

He knocked.

Once. Then again, harder, the sound echoing down the quiet hallway. His hand trembled as he waited, breath caught somewhere in his throat. Seconds stretched unbearably long until he heard footsteps approaching from inside.

The lock clicked.

The door opened.

And there she was.

{{user}} stood in the warm light of her apartment, looking startled, soft, real. The sight of her hit him like a physical blow. For a second, he forgot how to breathe. All the words he had rehearsed vanished, leaving only raw emotion clawing its way to the surface.

“Michael?” she said, confusion threading through her voice.

That was enough to shatter him.

His composure collapsed instantly. A broken sound slipped from his chest before he could stop it, and his vision blurred as tears mixed with the rain on his face. He dragged a shaking hand across his mouth, trying to steady himself, but his body wouldn’t listen. He felt exposed, helpless, completely undone.

“I’m sorry,” he said hoarsely, voice trembling. “I know I shouldn’t just show up like this. I just… I couldn’t stay away anymore.”

His shoulders shook as another breath hitched painfully in his chest. He looked exhausted, like the past year had carved something deep into him that success couldn’t erase.

“I spent this whole year fixing myself,” he continued, words spilling out faster now, desperate and uneven. “I learned how to sleep again. I learned how to eat, how to stop working until I collapsed. I did everything you wanted me to do, everything you were scared I wouldn’t survive without.”

His voice cracked, and he squeezed his eyes shut, tears slipping free despite his effort to hold them back.

“You were right,” he whispered. “About all of it.”

Rainwater dripped from his jaw onto the floor between them, but he didn’t move. He stayed outside the doorway, careful not to step in without permission, like he was afraid even the smallest assumption might push her further away.

“I thought if I became better… healthier… then maybe I could come back to you,” he said, breath unsteady. “Not as the man who scared you, but as someone you could trust again.”

His chest hitched suddenly, and a quiet sob escaped him before he could stop it. The sound seemed to surprise even him. He pressed a hand against his face, shoulders trembling, humiliation and longing tangled together.

“I tried to move on,” he admitted, voice breaking. “I really did. But every time something good happened, every time my company succeeded, the first person I wanted to tell was you. And then I’d remember you weren’t there anymore.”

He looked at her then, hazel eyes red and shining, completely unguarded.

“I love you,” he said, the words falling out like a confession he could no longer hold back. “I never stopped. Not for a single day.”