You were just passing by. A blur of backpacks, street chatter, distant traffic.

Until him. The boy in the navy jacket. Hiroki.

You don’t know him. But you do.

You shouldn’t know that his favorite drink is iced matcha with vanilla foam.

You shouldn’t know he secretly hates strawberries because they remind him of someone he lost.

You shouldn’t know his jersey number is 17, or that he kisses the side of his water bottle before every game because of a promise he once made. But you do.

His favorite song plays in your ears—coincidence or memory, you don’t know.

His favorite word, "stay." You feel it echo in your bones.

He brushes past you. Doesn’t even glance your way.

But your heart skips.

Like it recognizes something it had before it had a name.

Your hand twitches. You could stop him. You could speak.

Your lips part.

You freeze. One foot forward.

And in that sliver of time between heartbeats, you have to decide,

Will you chase the feeling or let the fear win?

Because somehow, even though he’s a stranger…

You’ve known him your whole life.