The plane had already landed, but Michael still felt like he hadn't arrived.
Everything around him moved fast—people stepping out, voices overlapping, announcements echoing—but inside, he felt stuck somewhere between the airport he left and the one he had just entered.
His phone was in his hand.
Unlocked.
The message is still there.
"I am sorry"
He had read it more times than he wanted to admit.
Not because he didn't understand it.
But because he did.
Too well.
Outside the airport, the air felt different.
Cooler.
Strange.
New.
Michael stood for a moment, taking it in—the unfamiliar buildings, the distant sound of traffic, the quiet rush of a place that didn't know him yet.
This was supposed to feel like a beginning.
Instead—
It felt incomplete.
His phone buzzed.
He looked down immediately.
Lucas.
Calling.
Michael stared at the screen.
His thumb hovered over the answer button.
Then stopped.
The call ended.
A second later—
It started again.
He exhaled slowly.
Closed his eyes briefly.
Then—
He picked up.
"Hello?"
There was a pause.
Then Lucas' voice came through.
Not playful.
Not light.
Soft.
"Michael…"
Michael didn't respond immediately.
"Yeah."
Another pause.
Longer this time.
Then—
"I'm sorry."
Michael blinked slightly.
Lucas continued, his words coming slower, heavier.
"I shouldn't have said that… what I said earlier. It was wrong."
Michael shifted his weight slightly, leaning against the side of the building.
"It didn't sound like a mistake," he said quietly.
"I know," Lucas replied quickly. "And that's why I'm calling. I've been thinking about it since the moment I said it."
He exhaled.
"I wasn't even angry the way I sounded… I was scared."
Michael's expression softened just a little.
Lucas went on.
"Scared that… maybe this distance would change things. Scared that I might lose you without even realizing it was happening."
His voice dropped slightly.
"And instead of saying that, I just… said rubbish."
A small, broken laugh escaped him.
Michael looked down at the ground, absorbing it.
"Is this how you react when you're scared?" he asked after a moment.
Lucas didn't hesitate.
"…Sometimes."
Michael nodded slowly.
"Because I was already stressed, Lucas," he said. "I missed my flight. I didn't even know if I could fix it. And then you—"
He stopped himself.
Took a breath.
"You made it harder."
Silence.
Not tense.
Just honest.
"I know," Lucas said quietly. "And I hate that I did that to you."
Another pause.
Then softer—
"I don't ever want to be the reason you feel like that again."
Michael closed his eyes briefly.
The tension in his chest loosened slightly.
Not gone.
But lighter.
"…Okay," he said.
Lucas exhaled, like he had been holding his breath the entire time.
"Okay?"
Michael nodded faintly, even though Lucas couldn't see him.
"I forgive you."
The silence that followed was different now.
Not heavy.
Not sharp.
Just… calm.
"That's why I love you" Lucas said with a soft smile.
"So," Lucas said after a moment, his tone slowly returning to something familiar, "future lawyer in America… how does it feel?"
Michael glanced around again.
On the wide roads.
The unfamiliar signs.
The people moving past him without noticing.
"…Different," he admitted.
Lucas chuckled softly.
"That sounds like something you would say."
"It is different," Michael insisted.
"Everything feels… bigger. Faster."
"Overwhelming?" Lucas asked.
Michael paused.
"…A little."
Lucas smiled to himself.
"Don't worry. You'll adjust. You always do."
"And you?" Michael asked. "How's China?"
Lucas let out a breath.
"Honestly? It feels like I just entered someone else's life."
Michael frowned slightly.
"What do you mean?"
Lucas shifted on his bed, staring up at the ceiling.
"The city is huge. Everything is moving all the time. People don't even slow down to think."
He laughed lightly.
"I almost got lost twice already."
Michael smiled faintly.
"That sounds like you."
"Excuse me," Lucas replied. "I'm a very organized person."
"You are not."
"I am when necessary."
They both laughed.
And for a moment—
It felt normal again.
Then Lucas' tone changed slightly.
More serious.
"I started looking into the companies properly today."
Michael straightened a bit.
"Yeah?"
Lucas nodded to himself.
"It's… a lot."
He let out a breath.
"Managing a car company, overseeing a luxury brand, handling properties in different countries… and I'm still expected to study at the same time?"
Michael listened carefully.
Lucas' voice dropped.
"It feels like I inherited a whole life I'm not ready for."
Michael didn't rush his response.
"You don't have to figure everything out at once," he said calmly.
Lucas was quiet.
Michael continued.
"You've already handled more than most people our age ever will. The rest… you'll learn."
A small pause.
Then—
"I'm here, Lucas. Even from here… I'm still with you."
Lucas smiled softly.
"That's why I love you"
"And I love you too" Michael said with a soft smile
Another silence.
But this one felt safe.
Lucas smiled softly on the other end, about to say something—
When Michael suddenly felt a light tap on his shoulder.
"Michael?"
He turned.
Standing behind him was a well-dressed man, holding a slim file, his expression calm but serious.
"Yes…?" Michael replied, slightly confused.
The man glanced briefly at Michael's phone, then back at him.
"We need to talk about your late arrival."
Michael's heart dropped.
Lucas' voice came faintly through the phone—
"Michael? What's wrong?"
But Michael couldn't answer immediately.
Because something in the man's tone… wasn't just formal.
It was final.
And for the first time since he landed—
Michael felt like he hadn't escaped the consequences after all.