The moment was permanently recorded in both of their memories, a moment neither would ever want to forget.
A subtle love story where one doesn't know the face of the other, and the other doesn't know the heart of the other.
A delicate parallel, where one is concealing their identity, and the other is guarding their feelings. In this quiet exchange, their connection grew, wrapped in mystery and unspoken truths.
A story of hidden layers, where every word, every gesture carried a weight unknown to the other, yet somehow, they both felt the pull of something undeniable—something destined to intertwine their paths further.
Sam then spoke up, his voice tinged with a mix of curiosity and sincerity. "Why do I feel like I've known you for a long time, even though I only met you yesterday?"
He paused for a moment, letting his words linger in the air, then added with a faint, almost wistful chuckle, "And the irony is, I still haven't seen your face."
"I don't know why but you remind me of someone, someone that I hope to leave in the past...." Sam said with a hint of melancholy as if lost in memories.
Naro squeezed his hand a little tighter, her voice soft and laced with curiosity. "Your ex?" she asked, as if her tone carried a hint of regret.
He let out a faint, almost bitter laugh, shaking his head slightly even though she couldn't see it. "No," he replied, his voice steady but heavy with emotion. "She was never really mine to call. It's just that… the story never got an ending."
He paused, gathering his thoughts, before continuing, "I felt like the boat was sailing, like we were on it together. I believed we were heading somewhere—anywhere. But then, I realized we were not."
"The story never got an ending because the boat never sailed to begin with," he said quietly, a tinge of sadness in his words.
Naro then eased the tight grib on his hands with a sense of regret or maybe guilt. She said, "what if the story you thought never got an ending, due to it never sailing, was just because you thought it was sailing time when it was not? "
She said with almost certainty "what if you were on the right shore, the right boat, just not on the right time...!" Then slowly speaking to herself "and the wrong person...!"
"What if the person you thought was sailing with was someone else entirely?"
Sam not sure how to response to this...!
Naro then let of of his hand brushing it off saying "never mind what I just said".
"Oi! We should be leaving now!" someone shouted. "It's almost 10 a.m., and we still have a two- to three-hour ride ahead!"
It seems like the others have returned from their walk.
Sam quickly pulled his hand back from inside the door before the others could enter. He stood up and gently closed the slightly open door.
"I guess this will be our goodbye," he said. "It's sad that we're parting without me ever seeing your face… but I'll make sure to call you since I have your number now."
Naro nodded from behind the door. "Alright… I'll be waiting for your call. And when you do, I'll show you my face."
He gave a small smile. "Then I'll definitely call you. No matter what."
With that, he turned and walked back toward the others, gathering with them as they made a quick plan before leaving.
As the group prepared to depart, the others headed inside to say their farewells to Naro.
"Sam, aren't you coming?" Jangla asked.
"I already did," he said simply. "You guys go ahead."
Bori then tossed Sam the car key. "You're driving now." Saying that we walked in.
Sam caught them, excitement in his eyes. As he turned toward the car, and started the car.