The night stretched on after the stranger's departure, yet neither Kei nor Min seemed ready to speak. The ledger pages turned beneath Kei's fingers, his pen moving with steady strokes that were almost too precise, too deliberate.
Min lingered nearby, pretending to straighten shelves, though his mind was far from the task. His eyes kept drifting back to Kei—the set of his jaw, the stiffness in his shoulders, the way his usually calm presence now carried an edge.
Finally, Min broke the silence. "You knew him, didn't you?"
Kei paused. His hand froze mid-stroke before he carefully placed the pen down. "It doesn't matter," he said quietly.
"That's not an answer." Min's voice was softer than he intended, but it carried enough weight to make Kei glance up. Their eyes met, silver to determined brown, and for a heartbeat the world seemed to hold its breath.
Kei leaned back, folding his arms. "Some people from the past don't deserve to take up space in the present. That's all you need to know."
But Min shook his head. "If they can walk into this shop and look at you like that… then they're already in your present. And if they hurt you once, what's stopping them from trying again?"
For a moment, Kei's calm façade faltered. He exhaled slowly, as though steadying something deep inside.
"You're stubborn," he murmured.
"And you're deflecting," Min replied, a faint smile tugging at his lips despite the worry in his chest.
Kei looked away, his gaze settling on the darkened window. Outside, the street was quiet, but it felt like shadows pressed close, listening.
"Min," Kei said at last, his tone almost pleading, "just… trust me. There are things better left untouched."
Min wanted to push. Every instinct screamed at him to demand the truth, to shake loose the secrets hiding behind Kei's silver eyes. But when he saw the faint tremor in Kei's hand, he swallowed his words.
Instead, he stepped closer and brushed his fingers lightly against Kei's sleeve. "Then at least don't carry it alone. If you can't tell me everything… let me stand with you anyway."
Kei's eyes widened just slightly before softening. He didn't answer, but he didn't pull away either.
And in that quiet moment, though the shadows still lingered, Min felt a small victory—the first crack in the walls Kei had built around himself.
To be continued...