Chapter 3 — Maria's POV: The First Meeting → Last Moment
I first saw him sitting alone at the hospital cafeteria, tucked in a corner like he was hiding from the world.
His eyes were sharp, bright, but distant—like he was studying life while everyone else stumbled through it blindly.
"Mind if I sit here?" I asked, gesturing to the empty seat across from him.
He didn't look up.
"…Sure," he muttered.
The silence that followed was heavy. Not uncomfortable, just… deliberate.
I decided to ignore it.
"I'm Maria," I said.
"Do you always eat lunch alone?"
He finally glanced up, one eyebrow arched.
"Do you always talk to strangers?"
I smiled.
"Only interesting ones."
Something flickered in his eyes.
Not trust. Not warmth.
But curiosity.
---
Weeks passed. We'd see each other in the library, at the cafeteria, sometimes in the hallway.
He never spoke unless he had to.
I never pushed.
But slowly…
I noticed the way he hesitated before answering questions, the way he flinched if someone raised their voice, the way his hands curled tightly around a book.
He was… fragile. Broken in places the world didn't see.
---
The last time I saw him before he vanished, he was standing at the edge of the playground outside the hospital.
"Arin…" I called softly.
He turned, eyes cold, distant.
"I… I have to go," he said.
I wanted to reach out. To stop him.
To tell him he didn't have to vanish.
But the words never left my lips.
He walked away.
And I realized then that some children are born carrying storms too heavy for anyone else to calm.
---
That was my last memory of the boy who would one day become the man I couldn't stop loving.