Caleb stood frozen in the airport terminal, the world ringing in his ears. Zoe's figure disappeared through security, and that quiet goodbye felt like a thousand knives cutting into him.
He drove home in a daze. The house was exactly as it had been before; new furniture, fresh paint, curtains matching the old ones down to the pattern. But it was empty. Missing something he could never get back.
He tore through drawers, wardrobes, every corner, even the trash, until his fingers brushed the edge of something half-burnt in the corner. It was a scrap of a photo. Zoe, ten years younger, was smiling brightly.
His chest seized so tight he could barely breathe. He curled up on the floor, the scrap clutched in his fist, and sobbed until he had no tears left. Regret crashed over him like a wave,
