The city felt like a maze of shadows and neon. Rain-soaked streets reflected headlights as cars rushed by, but for Sophia and Adrian, time had slowed into panic.
"He could be anywhere," Sophia said, her voice cracking, eyes scanning every corner.
Adrian gently took her wrist. "We'll find him. Think—what places does he love? What stories does he always talk about?"
Her eyes widened. "The bookstore… the one near the old park. He said it looks like a castle."
They ran. Not as CEO and doctor. Not as ex-lovers.
But as parents.
At the bookstore, no one had seen him.
At the park—just a pair of tiny footprints, washed partly by rain.
Adrian knelt down. "These are fresh. He was here."
Sophia touched the soaked drawing lying on the bench.
Their family—his crayons had bled in the rain.
She started sobbing. "This is my fault…"
"No," Adrian whispered, holding her close for the first time in years. "This is our son. We'll find him. Together."
Just then, Adrian's phone rang.
The police had found a little boy, cold and frightened, near the riverside café.
---
And that night, under flickering streetlights, Sophia and Adrian arrived—breathless, soaked, desperate—
To find Ethan asleep in a policewoman's arms, whispering, "I just wanted them to stop fighting…"