The rain had just stopped when Elena Carter tucked her journal into her bag. The café windows were misted, and the faint aroma of roasted coffee beans mixed with the earthy scent of wet pavement. Writing here had become her small ritual—one place where silence drowned out the noise of her memories.
Her pen always bled the same question onto paper: Can a scarred heart ever be worthy of love?
Elena shook her head, closing the book. Some questions didn't need answers. Not yet.
The bell above the café door jingled, pulling her attention. A tall man walked in, shaking droplets of rain from his jacket. His eyes scanned the room, not searching for anyone in particular, just… searching. He looked like someone who had carried too many battles on his shoulders and survived them all.
Ethan Williams.
He ordered a black coffee—no sugar, no cream—and as he turned, their eyes met. Just for a moment. Long enough for Elena to feel that strange tug she didn't believe in anymore.
She quickly looked down at her phone, pretending to scroll. But the empty seat across from her betrayed her solitude.
"Is this taken?" His voice was deep but gentle.
Elena hesitated before meeting his gaze. "No… you can sit."
He nodded, placing his cup down. Silence lingered, not awkward, just heavy with something unspoken.
"You come here often?" he asked.
She gave a small smile. "Sometimes. It's quiet. I like quiet places."
"Me too." He paused, as if testing whether to say more. "Quiet has a way of… keeping the scars in check."
The words caught her off guard. For a heartbeat, she thought he might have read her journal. But the look in his eyes told her—he carried scars of his own.
Elena wrapped her fingers around her cup, unsure why her heart raced. She didn't even know his name, yet a part of her understood him. The part that still ached, still feared, still hoped.
"Do you believe scars can heal?" she asked softly, not sure why she let the question slip.
He studied her, then gave the faintest smile. "Maybe not disappear… but they can teach us how to love differently."
The café grew quieter, the world outside blurred by the rain-streaked window. In that fragile moment, Elena realized her story wasn't ending—it was only beginning.
And it began with a stranger named Ethan.
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✍️ – NisotWrites