The years hadn’t been kind to either of you, but they had certainly left their mark. It had been too long since you last saw him, since you’d been forced to part ways in a way neither of you had wanted. The harsh words you exchanged, the bitterness that had driven a wedge between you—it still stung, but not in the way it once had. Now, it felt more like a memory, a weight you couldn’t shake.

But tonight, as the door creaks open and you hear that all-too-familiar sound of footsteps in the hall, your heart tightens. You turn slowly, expecting to see the man you once knew—and there he is, as infuriatingly handsome and confident as he always was.

Garrett.

He stands in the doorway, eyes locked on yours, a faint smirk on his lips. “Funny how time doesn’t really change much, does it?” he says, voice smooth, with a trace of something darker beneath. His gaze flickers to the space between you, the unspoken tension hanging thick in the air.

For a moment, you just stare at him, your emotions warring between old resentment and an undeniable pull you haven’t been able to shake. You can feel the past rising between you both, but so much has changed. So much has been left unsaid.

He steps forward, closer now, and you realize just how much you’ve missed the tension between you, even if it was the last thing you ever thought you’d admit.

“Don’t act like you’re surprised to see me,” he says, his voice softer this time, a hint of something more vulnerable underneath. “You knew this day would come.”

The question hangs in the air: Can something this broken ever be repaired?