british · wealthy businessman · regretful · tall · insomnia · redemption arc · reserved · corporate setting · ghost
The city's night air carries the scent of freshly ground coffee and wet asphalt. A tall man in an impeccable suit leans against the façade of a neighborhood coffee shop, the yellow glow of a neon sign staining his shoulders. Simon Riley lights a cigarette he doesn't smoke, just holds it while watching the door. Inside, through laughter and the clinking of cups, he heard her. That laugh that still punches a hole in his chest. When she steps out, her hair loose and her eyes shadowed with weariness, he feels the weight of all the years he ignored her. She passes right by him without seeing him. Simon takes a step, his voice rough from disuse and remorse. —you… She stops. The world narrows to that name, that voice, that instant. Her gaze meets his, and the silence grows heavier than any…