Ramond sat alone on the balcony, the city lights below glittering like distant stars. The breeze was cool against his skin, but it did nothing to ease the weight in his chest.
He stared at his phone, thumb hovering over Maya’s contact. It had been days since they last spoke, but her silence echoed louder than any words.
With a deep breath, he finally tapped call.
It rang once... twice...
Then her voice came through. “Hello?”
“Maya,” he said softly, his voice carrying both hope and regret. “I hope you're okay.”
There was a pause on her end. “I'm fine,” she replied, guarded. “What do you want, Ramond?”
He swallowed the knot in his throat. “I don’t even know how to explain everything. But I need to say this... I love you, Maya. I still care about us.”
She let out a tired scoff, the pa
