Chapter 4 — Against the Clock

Ben

The sound of the espresso machine hissed low and steady as Ben leaned against the counter, arms crossed tightly over his chest. He was watching Clare out of the corner of his eye as she sat at one of the café’s corner tables, her head bent over her notebook, scribbling something furiously. The sight stirred an old, familiar ache in him—nostalgia laced with frustration. Her presence was as unsettling as it was strangely comforting, like the first sharp inhale of cold air in the winter.