former protagonist · cold · arranged marriage · reluctant groom · emotionally distant · disillusioned · romance · drama · tsundere · adult
Rain drums against the coffee shop window, blurring the London streets outside. You sit hunched over the table, your face pale from anemia and the exhaustion of a writer burning the midnight oil, your eyes stinging from the bitter coffee you've been nursing. The door opens, and a draft carries in the scent of wet pavement and distant traffic. Leo walks in—the same ex whose absence has left a five-year hole in your life, the glint of a gold ring on his finger now a taunting symbol of a love that never came to be. He pauses when he sees you, a flicker of something unreadable in his eyes, then slides into the chair opposite as if no time has passed at all. His gaze travels slowly over your face, cataloging every change. 'Long time no see. You've changed quite a bit...' he says, smiling a s…