1. Ravi Bonetti

The sun streams through the floor-to-ceiling window, blinding me for a moment. London's heavy clouds have parted in a temporary miracle, and now everything outside looks brighter, more alive—a stark contrast to what's happening inside me.

My eyes follow the skyline in the distance, but my mind is miles away.

"Ravi?"

Pedro's voice pulls me out of the trance.

"Want to weigh in on this?"

It takes me half a second to process the question.

I'm in a meeting.

Conference room at headquarters.

My suit is immaculate, the table is covered with projected charts, and the company's partners are all staring at me, waiting for something brilliant to come out of my mouth.

So I do what I've become very good at.

I pretend I'm in control.

"What exactly did Jackson suggest again?" I ask, looking at the CFO.

"That we reconsider the assets in our Dubai portfolio. There are risks of political instability and—"

He starts repeating himself, but I already know what to say. I don't even need to hear the rest.

"Keep the assets."

My voice is steady.

"Instability creates opportunities as well. And if things don't go as expected, we're more than capable of absorbing the loss. The risk is worth the return."

Everyone nods.

Pedro shoots me that little smirk that says he knows I wasn't paying attention—but also knows no one else noticed.

The meeting goes on, and I return to pretending I care about every detail, even though part of me wants nothing more than silence.

The kind of silence that only exists after you've lost something that can never be replaced.

When the meeting finally ends and everyone files out, Pedro drags a chair beside mine, just like he's done for years.

"You're in your own little bubble again, aren't you?" he says, resting his elbows on the table.

"I'm focused," I lie, leaning back in my chair.

"Focused, my ass. You were in Narnia."

He chuckles, but then his expression softens.

"It's been almost a year... hasn't it?"

I close my eyes for a moment.

A year.

One year since the accident.

Since I lost my entire world in one stupid crash on a rain-slick country road.

I lost my wife...

...and the daughter she was carrying.

We were still arguing over baby names.

She wanted something classic, like Helena.

I used to tease her, saying it sounded like the name of a Greek queen.

She'd smile and say that was exactly why she loved it.

I didn't care what her name would be.

I just wanted to hold her in my arms.

The name never mattered.

It never did.

But I never even got that chance.

I woke up in a hospital room with the news...

...and a hole where my plans, my future, and my happiness used to be.

Since then, I've been living on autopilot.

I buried myself in work.

Expanded the company.

Tripled our investments.

Turned myself into a machine.

Everyone thinks it's admirable.

Only Pedro knows it's just a prettier way of running away.

"It's Friday," he says, breaking the silence.

"I already booked us a table at our usual pub. Everyone's going. And before you tell me you're not coming, I've already told the team you'll be there. So deal with it."

"Pedro..."

"No excuses, Ravi."

"You need to get out.

Even if it's just to drink a bitter beer and complain about life."

"I haven't been complaining about life."

"No."

He stands up.

"You've just been avoiding living it."

He throws his jacket over one shoulder.

"I'll see you there at seven.

Don't make me come drag you out."

He leaves before I can give him a real refusal.

And maybe...

Deep down...

He's right.

London has a strange kind of charm on Friday nights.

People crowd into pubs as if that first pint could save their entire week.

Sometimes...

It actually does.

By the time I arrive at our favorite place—The Hollow Oak—a familiar group is already laughing around a corner table.

Pedro spots me first and raises his glass in a silent invitation to lower my guard.

I walk over, and he immediately pulls out a chair.

"Thought you were going to bail."

"I'm still considering it," I reply as I sit.

The conversation is light.

Investments.

Football.

The firm's new assistant who's become the subject of bets about how long she'll survive the pressure.

I smile every now and then.

Pretend I'm part of it.

But my attention keeps drifting.

At least...

Until my eyes land on the bar.

She's facing away from me, yet somehow she captures my attention instantly.

The bartender.

Her brown hair is twisted into a messy bun.

A fitted black T-shirt hugs her frame.

Every movement is efficient, almost automatic.

She wipes down the counter with intense concentration, as though every inch she cleans is another battle won.

But there's something in her shoulders.

A heaviness.

A tension.

It's more than exhaustion.

Much more.

Something inside me recognizes it.

As if she's trying to keep herself together on the outside while everything inside is falling apart.

She turns to grab a bottle.

Our eyes meet.

Just for a second.

And for one ridiculously brief moment...

I forget how to breathe.

She looks away and goes back to work.

I don't.

I stand before I've even realized I've made the decision.

I don't say anything to the guys.

I simply walk toward the bar, my eyes fixed on her, as though something stronger than reason is pulling me forward.

It isn't thirst.

It isn't curiosity.

It's the kind of impulse you can't explain.

She finishes serving a cocktail to a woman at the end of the bar and turns toward me.

Warm brown eyes meet mine.

Attentive.

Professional.

Not unfriendly.

"What can I get you?" she asks.

There's a slight accent.

Brazilian, maybe.

"A beer, please.

Anything bitter enough to make me forget this week."

A small smile curves across her lips.

For the first time in months...

The air feels different in my lungs.

"We've got an IPA that's pretty good at that."

She reaches for a bottle and places it in front of me with practiced ease.

"You sound like you know what you're talking about," I say, trying not to sound ridiculous.

"Two years working here earned me an unofficial degree in hangovers," she replies with a quiet laugh.

The sound hits me harder than I expect.

Light.

Honest.

Beautiful.

It's been a long time since I've heard someone laugh like that.

No filters.

No effort.

Just genuine.

"Looks like I came to the right place."

"Sometimes it feels like everyone does."

"Fridays tend to have that effect on people."

She's simply being friendly.

Naturally.

But there's something about the way she speaks that keeps drawing me in.

There's fatigue beneath her voice.

A quiet weariness that doesn't quite match her smile.

"The weather was strange today, wasn't it?" I say awkwardly, mostly to keep the conversation going.

"Sunshine in London always makes me suspicious."

She smiles again.

"I get suspicious whenever the sky decides to be kind."

"It's almost like it's apologizing in advance for the next storm."

The comment catches me off guard.

Smart.

Poetic.

Real.

I think about saying something else.

Asking another question.

Maybe even asking her name.

But I don't get the chance.

"Raaavi!"

Pedro's voice echoes across the pub.

"You gonna ask the bartender out or are you coming back to drink with your friends?"

She laughs again, covering her mouth with her fingers.

"Your friends seem... enthusiastic."

"They talk too much."

I pick up the bottle and hold her gaze for one last second.

"Thank you."

"My pleasure."

I walk back to the table with the strange feeling that something small—

something almost impossible to notice—

has just changed.

I don't know her name.

But I know her smile is going to stay with me for days.

And for the first time in a very long time...

I want it to.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***