It was a Thursday afternoon.
The air carried a slight chill as a girl stopped in front of a modest building. Reaching into the pocket of her skirt, she pulled out a small card and looked at it once more. There was only the name of the building written on it—no phone number, no address, nothing else.
After a brief pause, she stepped inside.
The building was busy, yet strangely quiet. Elderly people were being gently escorted into rooms, staff members walked by carrying trays of tea, while others handed out books to people waiting in the lounge. It felt less like a clinic and more like a peaceful place where everyone naturally spoke in softer voices.
The girl, Mei, looked around before making her way to the reception desk.
The problem was...
She didn't even know the therapist's name.
Nor did she have a number to call.
She simply stood there and waited patiently for the receptionist to finish her phone call.
The woman behind the desk wore a white linen shirt tucked neatly into a brown pencil skirt. Her hair was tied into a bun, held together by a patterned scarf.
As soon as she looked up, she smiled warmly.
Before Mei could even say a word, the receptionist spoke.
"Red shirt... black skirt... black-and-red hair... and grey eyes. Are you Miss Mei Hua?"
"Huh?"
Mei blinked, clearly caught off guard.
"...Yes."
The receptionist turned to her computer and nodded to herself.
"Just as he predicted. You actually came at the right time." She looked back up with the same cheerful smile. "He's free at the moment. Third floor, fifth door on your right."
Then, almost as if talking to herself, she let out a small sigh.
"Hmm... I didn't believe him at first. But now I'm really hoping his prediction about me getting married comes true soon."
Her expression brightened the moment she finished speaking.
Seeing how warm the atmosphere was, Mei found herself smiling ever so slightly.
"You're already pretty," she said. "I'm sure it'll happen soon."
The receptionist laughed softly.
"I hope so."
Both of them shared a small smile before Mei turned and headed toward the stairs.
---
Third floor.
Fifth door on the right.
The door was closed.
Just as Mei lifted her hand to knock, a calm voice came from inside.
"Come in."
She pushed the door open.
Inside sat a man in a loosely tucked blue dress shirt paired with black suit trousers. His medium-length dark blue hair rested neatly around his face, while a pair of silver-rimmed glasses framed his dark blue eyes.
In one hand, he held a cup of coffee.
On the table opposite him sat another cup—tea.
Beside it rested a small plate carrying exactly five sugar cubes.
Mei paused.
Surprised.
Cautious.
She slowly walked over, sat down, and quietly dropped the five cubes into the tea before stirring it.
After a moment, she looked at the man.
"How did you know I'd come?"
A faint laugh escaped him.
"Wouldn't it be better if we formally exchanged names first, Miss Hua?"
Mei froze.
She had never told him her name.
Her guard instinctively rose again.
The man noticed but showed no change in expression.
"My name is Levi Walker," he said calmly, every word perfectly measured. "And yours?"
A foreigner...?
Mei studied him for a moment.
He looks like one... and even his accent is a little strange.
Where is he from...?
... Meiling?
After a brief hesitation, she decided to lower her guard slightly.
"Mei Hua."
She took a sip of her tea before looking back at him.
"So... are you going to answer my question now?"
Levi chuckled softly before taking a sip of his coffee.
"I've always been good at predictions," he said with a professional smile. "I just chose the logical route instead of the magical one."
It wasn't the answer Mei had been expecting.
Before she could think of another question, Levi continued.
"Besides... the man you met before is a friend of mine. He told me about your conversation, so I already know some of the details."
He gently set his coffee down.
"But..."
"I'd like to hear it from you."
The warmth in his smile remained, but his expression faded into the calm professionalism of a therapist.
Mei lowered her eyes to the cup in her hands.
"Okay. It was the night before my birthday..."
"A friend of mine, Lian Ye, went out to deliver fruit. His deliveries usually took a few hours because he always spent too much time talking to people..."
She gave a faint smile before it quickly disappeared.
"But that night... it took too long."
"When I finally decided to go looking for him, I found his parents standing outside. They told me he hadn't come home yet."
"We waited..."
"...thinking he'd come back like always."
She paused.
"The next morning..."
"I thought it would be like every other year."
"He'd be the first person to wake me up..."
"...and wish me a happy birthday."
Her fingers tightened slightly around the cup.
"But he never showed up."
"I went back to his house."
"Nothing had changed."
"That's when it finally hit us..."
"...something had happened to him."
"We searched everywhere."
"We did everything we could."
"But..."
"...we couldn't find him."
Silence settled over the room.
Levi sat quietly for a few moments. He gently tapped the handle of the porcelain cup with a finger before letting his eyes drift to the thin stream of steam rising from the surface.
Then, in a low, gentle voice, he asked,
"Wanna hear a story?"
A calm, professional smile rested on his face.
Yet somehow...
It also felt warm.