she barely said a word the whole ride
I tried light small talk.A harmless joke, nothing landed
you don't talk much, huh?
Not today she said softly
That voice,it wasn't shy.it was just distant, like her mind was elsewhere like where ever she was going she was already bracing for battle.
But she did tell me her name_jane_and that was something.
I gave her my business card hoping she would call
she took it politely slipped it into her bag and waved
Then she was gone
Later that day
I sat on my bed thinking but I wasn't thinking about work.i was thinking about Jane
people don't really stock in my head like this _ especially not strangers but she had
There was something about the silence between us it wasn't awkward it was heavy like she was carrying something she refused to sat down
I found myself checking my phone that night,once_okay, twice, wondering if she'd call
she didnt
Jane pov
The alarm blared again. i didn't even flinch.
I was already awake, lying still in bed with puffy eyes and a hollow feeling pressing against my ribs. My throat ached from the tears i cried after work—and then cried again in the shower. Zayn's voice still echoed in my ears. Cold. Cutting. Every word felt like it had been aimed to slice through my skin.
"You had one task"
Humiliation burned my cheeks all over again.
I didn't want to go in. Not today. Maybe not ever.
But i sat up anyway. Because that dream of being an instructor still lived somewhere inside me, even if it felt like a dim candle flickering in a storm.
I forced myself into a simple blouse and slacks, tied my hair back with trembling fingers, and skipped breakfast. my stomach couldn't take it.
Stepping outside, i paused. The street was oddly quiet. No taxis. Again.
I exhaled slowly, trying not to panic. Not again. Please not again.
Then i saw him.
That same sleek, dark car. Same sharp suit. Same easy, maddeningly handsome smile leaning against the driver-side door.
The stranger.
He was waiting.
For me.
My heart skipped.
My breath caught in my throat. For a second, i thought i was imagining him. Maybe my sleep-deprived brain had conjured him up like a wish it didn't know it had made.
But no—he was real. Very real.
He pushed off the car, casual but purposeful, like this was the most natural thing in the world. Like showing up to the exact same street corner two mornings in a row wasn't strange at all.
"Morning," he said, his voice low and smooth—like warm coffee
I blinked. Heat crept into my face. "You… you came back?"
"I figured someone might need a ride again," he said, tilting his head.
i looked down at my shoes, cheeks burning. "You didn't have to do that."
"I wanted to." A beat. "Besides, you never called."
"I… was distracted," i said softly, and it came out more like an apology than i intended.
He nodded. "Rough first day?"
That was an understatement. But i just gave a tight smile. "You could say that."
A moment of quiet stretched between us. The city was waking up around them, but for once, i didn't feel like i was drowning in it.
He opened the passenger door. "Come on. I promise not to talk your ear off this time."
i hesitated for just a breath.
Then i got in
Levi pov
She got in.
i tried not to let it show—how my chest eased, how the corner of my mouth wanted to lift more than it should.i just closed the door gently and circled around to the driver's seat, sliding in beside her like it was nothing.
But it wasn't nothing.
She was here.
i been hoping she'd show. Expecting? No. But hoping—yeah.
she sat stiffly, her bag clutched in her lap like a shield. Her blouse was crisp, but her eyes… they looked like they hadn't slept. That alone made my jaw tighten. Whoever or whatever had put that look on her face_i wanted to shove it into traffic.
I didn't speak right away. Just started the car and pulled out smoothly into the street.
I glanced at him, a quick, sideways look. "You always pick up strangers?"
"Only the ones who forget to call," I said lightly.
That earned her the ghost of a smile. Not much. But it was a start.
I let the silence hang for a bit. Let her breathe.
Then, quieter, more real: "I wasn't sure you'd be here."
She didn't look at him. "I wasn't sure I would either."
There it was again—that quiet honesty. No pretense, no sugarcoating. Just her. Raw and worn and showing up anyway.
"You looked like you had a hell of a day yesterday," i said carefully.
She gave a soft, humorless laugh. "That obvious, huh?"
"Not to most people." I glanced at her. "But I notice things."
She met my eyes then, just for a moment. And in that moment, something passed between them—something unspoken, but real.
i didn't need to know the details. Not yet. But i knew what it was to feel small in a place that promised to make you big. He knew what it was to carry yourself like you had something to prove—especially when no one seemed to care.
"I'm Levi, by the way," I added, breaking the beat of silence. "Since yesterday's intro was… brief."
She blinked. "Right. Jane
"I remember."
And I did. The name, the way she said it. The curve of her voice when it was rushed, breathless.
He remembered all of it.
As the city passed by in slow motion, i made a silent promise to myself:
If she kept showing up—i would, too.
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