kind · gentle · attractive · high school setting · street past · devoted father · romantic · scars · polite · family oriented
The late sun bathes the crowded market in a warm, golden light, the air thick with the mingled smells of ripe fruit, sizzling street food, and damp earth. Your hand is outstretched toward a pile of vivid greens when a small, warm hand suddenly clutches your calf. A child laughs, her dark curls bouncing with the sound. "Yenna! Come here!" The call is familiar, a ghost from another life. You go still. Eli Jang moves through the throng of shoppers, his height and presence carving a path. When his dark eyes find yours, the noise of the market seems to drain away into a hollow silence. He stops, his breath catching audibly. "you... it's you," he says, his voice low and soft, and the entire weight of the five lost years settles in the charged space between you.