FOUND✔

PROLOGUE

She came running towards me.

The long red skirt she had chosen for the evening clearly wasn't meant for running. Every few steps she gathered its heavy folds in one hand before laughing at herself and trying again. The breeze refused to cooperate, constantly throwing loose strands of her wavy hair across her face.

She didn't bother fixing them.

She simply kept running.

Towards me.

God...

I had imagined this moment so many times that I had forgotten how breathtaking reality could be.

She finally stopped in front of me, slightly bent over as she caught her breath.

"You could've made this much easier by coming to me," she complained between breaths.

I smiled.

"I could have."

"Then why didn't you?"

"Because..." I shrugged, "...I like watching you fail at staying away from me."

She narrowed her eyes as if deciding whether to argue or hit me.

Instead...

She stepped closer.

Close enough for me to notice the tiny strand of hair caught on her lip.

Close enough for the faint fragrance of cardamom to reach me.

"You know..." she whispered, her voice softer now, "...it's always difficult when you're not around."

For a moment, I forgot how to breathe.

There are people you miss.

And then there are people whose absence quietly becomes a part of your everyday life.

She was the second.

Without thinking, I lifted my hand.

Not to kiss her.

Not yet.

I only wanted to tuck the loose strand of hair behind her ear.

My fingers stopped just short of touching her.

She smiled.

The same smile I had carried inside my memories for years.

"Ash..." she whispered.

Then something changed.

The wind disappeared.

The laughter around us faded.

The warmth of her presence slipped away so suddenly that my heart lurched in panic.

"Ahana..."

I reached forward instinctively.

My fingers met nothing.

My eyes flew open.

For a few seconds, I couldn't understand what had happened.

I looked beside me.

The bed was empty.

The room was silent except for the relentless ringing of my alarm.

I turned it off without taking my eyes off the empty space where, only a heartbeat ago, she had been standing.

The scent of cardamom had vanished.

So had she.

I leaned back against the headboard and covered my face with both hands.

"The dream again..."