Jace Montoya learned to live without Eli Alcaraz.
At least, that's what he told himself.
Days turned into months, then years. The town stayed the same—small, suffocating, full of whispers and unspoken rules. Jace did what was expected of him. He finished school, worked under his father's watchful eye, and became the perfect son everyone demanded him to be.
He buried himself in distractions, in meaningless conversations and forced smiles. He even tried dating girls, hoping that if he pretended hard enough, he might finally be what his father wanted.
But no matter how much time passed, nothing filled the space Eli had left behind.
Jace still found himself walking by the old riverbank, half-expecting to see Eli waiting for him. He still turned his head whenever he heard a familiar laugh, his heart foolishly hoping it was Eli's. But the town was empty without him.
And Jace was too much of a coward to leave.
Eli Alcaraz never belonged in that town.
That's what he told himself when his family sent him away—ripped from the only place he had ever known, from the only person who had ever truly seen him.
For years, he had no choice but to rebuild himself. His father had shipped him off to the city, forcing him into a life he had never wanted. He changed his name, severed every connection to his past, and became someone else. Someone who didn't flinch at the thought of Jace Montoya.
But no matter how far he ran, Jace was always there.
In the middle of the night, when he let his mind wander. In the stolen moments of silence, when his heart still ached for something he wasn't supposed to want.
Eli told himself it didn't matter. That their story had ended the night they were caught.
But deep down, he had never stopped waiting for the day he would see Jace again.
And that day came sooner than he expected.
It happened on an ordinary afternoon, on a street that neither of them should have been on.
Jace had come to the city on business, following in his father's footsteps even though he resented every second of it. He had just stepped out of a café when he saw him.
Eli.
Standing across the street, older now, sharper, his dark hair tousled by the wind.
Jace's heart stopped.
For a second, he thought he was dreaming.
Then Eli turned, and their eyes met.
The world around them blurred.
For years, Jace had imagined this moment—what he would say, what he would do if he ever saw Eli again. But now that it was real, all he could do was stare, his breath caught in his throat.
Eli took a step forward, hesitating.
Jace did the same.
And in that instant, everything they had buried came rushing back.
Because some stories don't end.
They just wait for the right moment to begin again.