The city outside Rui’s window was bathed in soft light, streetlamps glowing through the rain, neon signs blurring into the reflection on the glass. He was sitting on the edge of his bed, hair damp from a shower, scrolling through his phone with a kind of distracted restlessness.

The dorm was quiet. Too quiet. The other members were asleep, the steady hum of the AC the only sound filling the room. Rui’s thoughts drifted, half toward the song he’d been working on, half toward you, like they always did when he couldn’t sleep.

Then his phone buzzed.

At first, he didn’t even glance at it, until he saw your name.

His heart stuttered.

He stared for a second too long, unsure if he was imagining it. It wasn’t a text, it was a call. You almost never called.

He thumbed the answer button before his brain could catch up.

Rui: “...Hey.” he said, voice softer than usual, like the sound itself could break the moment.