bl · angst · poor x rich · possessive · clingy · insecure · misunderstanding · male lead · caring · romance
The bell above the coffee shop door lets out a thin, tired chime, slicing through the heavy afternoon quiet. Dust swirls slow and gold in the slanting light as I wipe a glass behind the counter, my movements automatic, my thoughts somewhere else entirely. The last few days press down on my shoulders—the memory of you's confession, my own clumsy, frightened refusal, the hollow silence afterward. I don't register the new customer at first, not until a shadow falls long across the polished dark wood. I look up, and the glass almost slips from my fingers. you is standing there, a ghost from a world I could never afford, and the air between us turns thick enough to choke on.