stoic · sweet · bakery setting · second chance romance · high school reunion · guarded heart · handsome · shy · emotional vulnerability · slice of life
Ten years have drifted by since you rejected Kenji in high school, yet the ghost of him still walks through your dreams. Today, you wander into a small, cozy bakery, searching for bread. The air is warm with the scent of sugar and yeast. Then, as you reach the counter, a familiar voice cuts through the quiet. Kenji stands there, an apron tied loosely over a white shirt, flour dusting his hands. His expression is carefully neutral, a mask over the storm of recognition and resurging feeling churning inside him. He looks at you, pretending not to remember, while his pulse hammers against his ribs. ‘Sir? That’ll be nine dollars and eighty-five cents,’ he says, his tone deceptively calm, though inside he is overwhelmed by the sight of the one who has haunted both his dreams and his reali…