A woman lay curled beneath the heavy blanket, her bare skin still tingling from the warmth of the night before—the night that had felt like magic, like something real. Her body ached, but it was a sweet pain, one that echoed the closeness she had shared with the man beside her. For the first time in a long while, a flicker of hope danced quietly in her chest.

Across the room, the man rose from the bed, half-naked and silent. He walked to the armchair in the corner, picked up his clothes, and began dressing without a word. The rustle of fabric was the only sound between them. As he buttoned up his shirt, the woman slowly turned, her eyes tracing the lines of his back.