Chapter 5 — The Perfect Stranger

The café was too loud.

Adrian sat tucked in a corner booth, fingers wrapped tightly around a chipped mug of black coffee. His hoodie was pulled up over his ears, not for warmth, but to keep the noise out. The place buzzed with life—steaming milk, clinking plates, chatter—but all of it felt like static behind glass.

He hadn’t planned to be here.

After the power outage last night, he’d panicked, thrown on clothes, and left his apartment without thinking. He walked for blocks until he found somewhere with lights still on, people moving, the illusion of safety.

Now he wasn’t sure if it was a good idea.

His back ached from sleeping sitting up, and the caffeine burned his empty stomach. He hadn’t spoken a word to anyone all morning, but it didn’t matter. Blending in was all he wanted.

Until the bell over the door rang.

Adrian glanced up automatically. And then froze.

The man who entered wasn’t particularly tall or loud. He wasn’t wearing anything that stood out—just a black jacket, dark jeans, and gloves despite the mild weather. But something about him snared Adrian’s attention and held it hostage.

He had dark hair, slightly tousled, a clean jawline, and a calm, unreadable expression. His eyes swept across the café like he was searching for something. Or someone.

Adrian’s blood turned to ice when those eyes landed on him—and stayed.

The stranger tilted his head slightly, lips quirking into something that wasn’t quite a smile. Then he began walking toward him.

Adrian’s pulse jumped.

No. No, this was just a stranger. A customer. He’d find a table and sit down and that would be the end of it. Coincidence.

But the man didn’t stop at any other table.

He stopped at his.

“Mind if I sit?” the man asked, voice low and smooth.

Adrian blinked. “Uh… I—sure.”

The man slid into the seat across from him like they did this every Sunday.

“I hate places like this,” he said, looking around. “Too loud. But I saw the lights on. Didn’t want to go back home just yet.”

Adrian didn’t know what to say. His tongue felt heavy. Every instinct told him to run—but nothing about this man screamed danger.

Not out loud, anyway.

The stranger extended a gloved hand across the table. “Evan.”

Adrian’s throat went dry.

He hesitated, then slowly reached out. “Adrian.”

Their hands touched—only for a second—but it was enough.

Adrian pulled away like he’d been shocked.

Evan just smiled. “Nice to meet you.”

There was something wrong with that smile.

It was soft. Easy. But behind it was something deeper. Like he knew Adrian. Like he liked knowing Adrian.

“Do you come here often?” Evan asked, glancing toward the counter.

“Not really,” Adrian said, his voice rasping from disuse. “Just… needed to be around people.”

Evan nodded. “Same.”

A silence settled between them, not awkward—but intentional.

Adrian looked away first.

“You okay?” Evan asked after a moment.

Adrian looked back, startled. “Why would you ask that?”

“You look tired. A little shaken.”

His heart hammered. “Rough night.”

“Bad dreams?”

Adrian froze.

Evan backtracked, casually sipping his coffee. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to pry.”

But he had pried. He’d poked something raw.

Adrian wrapped his fingers tighter around his mug. “Do I… do we know each other?”

Evan looked up, face unreadable. “No. Should we?”

Adrian searched his expression, trying to place the voice, the eyes, the way he tilted his head. It was all familiar. Too familiar.

“No?,” he said, but it sounded more like a question.

Evan’s smile returned—smaller this time, softer. “I’m told I have one of those faces.”

Adrian offered a weak smile, though it didn’t reach his eyes.

They sat in silence for a while longer. Evan didn’t press him with questions. He didn’t push. He just existed across the table like he belonged there, drinking his coffee, occasionally glancing out the window like he wasn’t waiting for anything.

But Adrian could feel it.

There was a quiet intensity to him. A focus. Like he was cataloguing every detail—every movement, every flicker of emotion. Like he’d been doing it for a long time.

Eventually, Evan stood.

“It was good to meet you, Adrian.”

He said it like a promise.

Adrian nodded slowly.

Evan hesitated. Then reached into his jacket and placed something on the table.

A silver lighter.

Simple. Elegant. Engraved with a small white lily.

Adrian’s breath caught in his throat.

Evan smiled. “You dropped that when you were leaving last night. Thought you might want it back.”

And with that, he walked away.

Adrian sat frozen in the booth for a full minute after the bell above the door jingled shut behind Evan.

He had never owned a lighter.