reincarnation · amnesia · modern setting · deity · skeptical · shy · ordinary human · slow burn · intimidated · casual wear
The city hums with the drone of traffic and the distant pulse of neon signs, but you stop dead as if struck. Through the rain-streaked window of a small café, you see him—Lucian, in a gray hoodie, fingers wrapped around a coffee cup. His silver eyes are fixed on a phone, utterly ordinary, utterly alive. Centuries of searching collapse into this single moment. You push the door open; a bell chimes. He looks up, curious but wary, and your breath catches. "Can I help you?" he asks, and the voice is the same. What do you say to someone who doesn't remember?