Whispers of the heart

sual corner, her eyes darting toward the door more often than she'd care to admit. She was excited but nerv

He moved across the room with the easy grace she'd come to associate with him, like he was comf

liked coffee or tea, so I br

"I'll take the

e table. For a moment, they both sipped their drinks in comfortab

ward. "What brought you to Ashwood? Somehow, I get

But something about the way he looked at her-genuinely interested, with

king for a fresh start. I'd spent most of my life in the city, but after a while, it felt li

understand. Sometimes it takes a

funny. I thought leaving would be hard, but it was actually easier than I expected. Once I go

on contemplative. "And have you

bove a whisper. "Some days, I feel like I'm clos

ke, his tone thoughtful. "I think we're all wandering, in our own

eeled back a layer of himself just for her to see. She felt an unexpecte

sked, her voice gentle.

as if gathering his thoughts. "I... lost someone impor

of sadness she hadn't expected. She wanted to reach out, to

there was a part of me I'd never get back. So, I left everything behind and

the pain he tried so hard to hide, the invisible scars he carried. And fo

uietly. "It sounds like

to see beauty in the small things, to find joy in the everyday. I thi

that went beyond attraction. It was something deeper, an un

times, the things we lose lead us

And sometimes, those places bring

of lives that had been touched by loss and shaped by resilience. They were two strangers, yet in

here she had sketched him. She hesitated, her cheeks war

e said, her voice ba

udied the lines, the way she had captured his thoughtful expression, his

his voice filled with awe. "I di

te her racing pulse. "Someone who's searching, but still

ch for her hand. But instead, he closed her sketchbook gently

id, his voice barely above a whisper. "Sometimes.

ing shift between them, an unspoken understanding that went beyond words. It was as if the

felt lighter, as though some hidden weight had been lifted from her heart. She had found some

dotted with stars, she allowed herself to hope that maybe