The alarm buzzed at 6:45., sharp and unforgiving.
Iman groaned, rolled over, and slapped it silent. Another day. Another lecture. Another cup of coffee she'd pretend was enough.
She moved through her morning clockwork-showering, toast, hoodie, earbuds. The city outside was already alive, but she felt oddly disconnected from it all. Like she was watching her life from the outside.
Classes were a blur. She took notes, nodded when the professor made eye contact, laughed when Layla whispered something sarcastic. But something tugged at her thoughts. A strange pressure in her chest. Like she was forgetting something important.
By the time the sun dipped low, painting the sky in bruised purples and gold she couldn't shake the feeling.
So she walked.
No destination. Just the rhythm of her footsteps and the chill of the evening air. That's when it happened.
She turned a corner she didn't recognize. The street was quiet. Too quiet.
And there he was.
Standing beneath a flickering streetlamp, as if he'd been waiting for her. Pale. Still. Eyes like dusk.
Iman stopped breathing.
He didn't move. Didn't speak. But something inside her shifted-like a thread had been pulled tight.
Then, just as suddenly, he was gone.
she stood there for a long time, heart pounding, unsure if she'd imagined it.
Her life had just changed.