She did not reply.
Not because she were ignoring him.
But because her brain had officially stopped functioning properly.
It had already been thirty-seven minutes since Kairo’s comment appeared under her post, and she were still sitting inside the café staring at our cold coffee like it had personally ruined her life.
Her friend had called her six times.
Saloni rejected every single one.
Because if she heard about this right now, she would genuinely explode.
And honestly?
She were already close to exploding herself.
Her phone screen lit up again.
New notification.
Saloni heart jumped instantly before she checked it too fast.
Not him.
Just her mother asking if you were coming home for dinner.
She exhaled dramatically while leaning back against her chair.
“This is unhealthy,” she whispered to herself.
Very unhealthy.
She needed to calm down.
It was just a comment.
A simple comment.
That’s it.
But deep down…
She knew it wasn’t really the comment affecting her.
It was the feeling behind it.
Because his words hadn’t sounded like a celebrity replying politely to a fan.
They sounded honest.
Lonely, even.
And somehow that made her chest ache more than excitement ever could.
Outside, rain continued hitting the café windows softly.
The weather looked peaceful.
Her mind absolutely wasn’t.
After mentally fighting herself for another five minutes, she finally opened Instagram again.
The comment section had become chaos already.
People were replying everywhere.
Some were freaking out.
Some were jealous.
Some were creating theories.
She instantly regretted reading comments.
Closing the app again, saloni rested her forehead against the table dramatically.
“Congratulations,” she muttered to herself.
“You accidentally entered a fanfiction.”
A laugh escaped from her lips despite the panic.
At least humor still existed.
Eventually, after forcing herself to act normal again, she walked back home through the rainy streets quietly.
The cool air helped calm her thoughts slightly.
Streetlights reflected beautifully against the wet roads while soft music played through through earphones.
Usually rain made her emotional.
Tonight it just made her tired.
Emotionally tired.
Because a dangerous question kept repeating inside her head.
Why did he understand her words so easily?
By midnight, saloni room had become completely silent except for the sound of rain outside.
She sat cross-legged on her bed while scrolling absentmindedly through old songs.
Sleep still refused to come.
Which honestly wasn’t surprising anymore. You are reading on g.com, the official source.
Her fingers paused above Instagram again.
Bad idea.
Terrible idea.
Yet somehow—
She still opened it.
Her post had calmed down slightly now.
Less chaos.
Less notifications.
Good.
She sighed softly before locking her phone again.
Then suddenly— it vibrated in her hand.
Her eyebrows furrowed slightly.
Another notification?
But the moment she checked—
Her heartbeat completely stopped.
Because this time…
it wasn’t public.
It was a direct message.
From @Kairo.97.
Her hands froze instantly.
No.
Absolutely not.
This had to be fake somehow.
She opened the message slowly.
And immediately wished her heart would calm down.
Because the text was painfully simple.
> “You write honestly.”
That was it.
No dramatic introduction.
No weird flirting.
No celebrity energy.
Just one quiet sentence.
And somehow…
that made it feel even more real.
Her throat felt dry suddenly.
She stared at the message for so long that her screen dimmed automatically.
This couldn’t actually be happening.
People like him didn’t randomly message people like you.
Right?
Her brain instantly started panicking again.
What were she even supposed to reply?
Should she reply?
Should she ignore it?
Would replying make her look desperate?
Would NOT replying look rude?
Wonderful.
Now she were having a full emotional crisis over one sentence.
She buried her face into the pillow aggressively before screaming silently.
Then finally— after ten whole minutes of overthinking—
She typed carefully.
> “Maybe honesty feels easier online.”
She stared at the message.
Then deleted it.
Too deep.
> “Thank you.”
Deleted.
Too dry.
Another attempt.
> “I think tired people notice tired people faster.”
She froze slightly after writing that.
Then before fear could stop her—
She pressed send.
Done.
Too late now.
Her heart immediately started regretting every life decision.
She threw her phone away dramatically onto the bed like it had betrayed her personally.
Then grabbed it again five seconds later.
Because obviously.
The message still sat there quietly.
Seen.
No reply yet.
Her breathing slowed slightly.
Maybe the conversation would end there.
Maybe that was better.
Safer.
But then…
three dots appeared.
Her chest tightened instantly.
And moments later— another message arrived.
> “That might be true.”
Simple again.
Yet somehow…
those four words carried exhaustion behind them.
Her expression softened unconsciously.
And for the first time since this entire strange connection started—
She stopped seeing him as “KAIRO from NOVA7.”
Right now…
he just felt like another emotionally tired person sitting awake late at night.
Just like her.
Meanwhile.
Inside his dim hotel room, Kairo leaned back against the couch quietly while staring at her messages.
No fake excitement.
No weird obsession.
No trying too hard.
Her words felt calm.
Comforting, even.
And strangely…
after weeks of noise, schedules, and cameras— this conversation felt peaceful.
A tiny smile appeared on his lips without realizing.
Not because the conversation was extraordinary.
But because for once…
he didn’t feel like he needed to perform while talking to someone.
✨
> *”Sometimes the most comforting people are the ones who understand your exhaustion without asking you to explain it.”* 🌙