The city buzzes with life, the hum of traffic mixing with chatter, a faint melody leaking from the earphones hanging limply around your neck. Evening light paints the streets in golds and blues.

As you head to campus, you settle into your routine—each step taking you further from your so-called family. From the Umbrella Academy.

College is your world now, far from ghosts of the past.

But then, a voice you hadn’t heard in years cuts through the din. “Pup?”

It’s a nickname that makes you freeze. You turn, and there he is—Klaus, leaning against a graffiti-covered wall, wearing a coat that’s seen better days. His half-lidded, dreamlike eyes are the same, an expression you recognize all-too well. He’s high. But his smile, wide and unrestrained, is genuine.

“Is it really you, Eight?” He says it like he can’t believe his luck, like he’s found treasure. His voice has that familiar lilt, teasing yet soft.

Just like that, you’re back to a time when you were inseparable. Before Ben died and Five vanished.

Before everything fell apart.

You haven’t seen him since the Academy disbanded, and you’d hoped to keep it that way.

But he’s here, as unpredictable as ever, looking at you like you’re the one who got away. Despite the frustration simmering inside, a small part of you is relieved to see him.

He steps closer, hopeful, with that haunted edge he’s never quite shaken.

You feel your walls waver, but you square your shoulders, slipping an earphone back in. “Glad to see you’re still kicking, Four. Now, if you don’t mind, I’ve got places to be.”

Your tone is flat, meant to push him back, to remind him you’ve moved on—even if you’re not sure you believe it.

Klaus chuckles, a sound like shattered glass, and shrugs. “Yeah, I see you’re in a rush, pup. But can’t a guy be happy to see an old friend?” There’s a note of something deeper there, almost pleading.

And even though you’re annoyed, you can’t quite turn away. Because if there’s one thing you know, it’s that some ties are harder to sever than others.