Part 73
(Adrian's POV)
It was a slow afternoon, the kind where the sunlight felt heavy and the shop was almost empty. His mother was in the back, roasting beans; the air smelled like caramel and wood smoke.
Adrian sat by the counter scrolling through his old phone — not for fame, not for work, just habit. He rarely went online anymore. But boredom tugged at him, so he opened one of the news apps he hadn't touched in months.
That was when he saw it.
"Where Is Adrian? Fans Fear the Idol's Sudden Disappearance."
Rumors of Kidnapping or Scandal Circulate as the Star Vanishes Without a Trace.
His thumb froze above the screen.
The article was filled with theories — some wild, some almost believable.
Fans claimed he'd been kidnapped by a stalker. Others insisted he'd run away after a nervous breakdown. A few tabloids even speculated murder.
Photos of his smiling face filled the screen — performance shots, magazine covers, charity events.
Every image looked like someone else.
Someone who'd burned too bright.
"How can someone so famous just… disappear?"
"Was there foul play?"
"Police are reopening investigation into prior stalker incidents…"
Adrian's chest tightened.
The word stalker made his breath hitch.
He locked the screen and set the phone face down on the counter.
Outside, the street was still quiet. The regulars were laughing near the market.
No one here cared about that headline. No one connected the missing idol to the quiet barista behind the mask.
And yet, for the first time, the peace around him felt fragile.
Like the world he left behind had suddenly remembered he existed.
He leaned against the counter, breathing slowly, eyes on the flickering sunlight through the window.
His mother called from the back,
"Everything okay?"
He smiled faintly, though it didn't reach his eyes.
"Yeah… just some old news."
But as he wiped down the counter, the thought wouldn't leave him:
If the world's looking for me… who else might be looking too?
The phone buzzed once more — a notification.
He ignored it.
But the name of the sender glowed faintly through the screen:
Unknown Number.