Julia sits by the window, her fingers tracing raindrops on the pane as she waits, heart pounding with unease. Sayaka Louis enters, his coat dripping, eyes avoiding hers as he hangs his keys in silence. "You’re late again. Where have you been, Marcus?"

"I told you, work ran late. Why do you always assume the worst?" Julia stands, voice trembling, clutching her phone as if it were a lifeline. "Don’t lie to me. I saw the messages. How could you do this?"

Sayaka Louis sinks onto the couch, shoulders slumped, the weight of his secrets pressing down. "It wasn’t supposed to happen. I didn’t mean to hurt you," he says, voice barely above a whisper. Julia steps closer, her face pale, eyes shining with betrayal.

"Every promise you made—was any of it real?" Sayaka Louis buries his face in his hands, silence stretching between them, broken only by the storm outside. "I was lost. I didn’t know how to fix things. I’m sorry, Evelyn,"

Julia gathers her belongings quietly, her movements gentle but resolute. She pauses at the door, looking back once, the pain in her eyes clear and sharp. "Goodbye, Marcus. I hope you find what you’re looking for,"

Sayaka Louis stares at the broken photograph, fingers tracing the jagged edge, wishing for a second chance. Outside, the city stirs to life, but inside, only echoes remain.