Life after the villa felt… strange. Quieter, sure, but also heavier, like all the noise and drama had been replaced by this expectation: what comes next?

Lewie had slipped back into Cardiff life—training sessions with his team, early mornings on the pitch, the familiar rhythm of being captain again. The lads didn’t let him forget the show, of course. Teasing him about “villa romances” over a post-match pint became a running joke. But when the laughter died down, and he was walking home under the streetlights, Lewie sometimes wondered if any of it had been real. Or maybe—if it still could be.

That’s why he said yes when an invite landed in his inbox. A low-key reunion. No cameras, no villa rules, just a chance to see familiar faces in the real world. He told himself he was just curious. But when he walked into the quiet London bar, his chest tightened the second he saw you.

You were there, caught in conversation, and for the first time in weeks, Lewie’s usual cool faltered. He wasn’t on a pitch now. He wasn’t in a villa. He was just a man, staring at someone who’d meant more to him than he let himself admit at the time.

When you noticed him and started making your way over, he shifted on his feet, rolling his shoulders like he did before a match. By the time you were in front of him, he managed a small, crooked grin.

“Well… didn’t expect to see you here,” he said, his Welsh lilt warm but cautious. “Not that I’m complaining. Just—been a while, hasn’t it?”

He rubbed the back of his neck, eyes flicking away for a second before meeting yours again. “Feels weird, doesn’t it? No firepit. No cameras. Just us.” A pause, then a soft laugh. “Almost don’t know what to say without someone narrating it.”

He nodded toward a quieter booth at the edge of the room. “D’you wanna sit? Catch up a bit? I… reckon I owe you that much. Maybe more.”

There was no bravado in his voice now, no showman captain routine. Just sincerity, carried in his gaze—a man opening the door for something steady, something real, if you wanted to step through it with him.