The bell over the café door chimed, sending the sound through the warm air.
Eli looked up from behind the counter, a faint smile forming before he noticed how tightly Seol-ah gripped her bag. "You're here early," he said.
She walked straight to the counter and placed the Polaroid down between them, the one from the envelope. The edges were damp from her fingers.
"Someone left this at my door last night." Her voice was steady, but her heart wasn't. "They told me not to trust you."
His gaze flickered to the photograph, then back to her. "And do you?"
"That's the problem. I don't know you well enough to decide."
He didn't answer right away. Instead, he took the Polaroid and studied it as if looking for a flaw in the print. "This was taken last spring," he finally said. "You were out photographing the cherry blossoms by the river. I was here, working."
"Then who—"
"I don't know," he interrupted, sliding the photo back toward her. His tone was calm, but there was a tension underneath it.
She narrowed her eyes. "You're not surprised someone is following me?"
"I'm concerned," he corrected. "But surprised? No."
"Why not?"
He leaned against the counter, arms folded. "Because you have a way of attracting people. Some don't have good intentions."
"That's not an answer."
He hesitated and then motioned toward the corner table—her table. "Sit with me."
Against her better judgment, she did. He brought two cups of coffee, setting hers down with the same careful precision as before.
"There are things about your life before the accident," he began, "that you might not be ready to know. Not yet."
"Ready or not, someone's leaving warnings at my door."
He met her gaze, his own unreadable. "Then let me make you a promise. Whoever is doing this, I'll find them before they find you."
The certainty in his voice was unsettling, not because she doubted it but because she believed him.
Outside, the sky had turned a soft gray, signaling an approaching storm. Somewhere in the distance, the faint click of a camera shutter seemed to echo against the glass.