The next morning arrived softer than usual.
The sky wore shades of pale gold,
and the cool breeze wandered through the streets carrying the scent of fresh flowers—
like the world itself had awakened gently.
Pearl walked beside Mathew on the way to school, her bag swinging lightly against her side.
The sunlight danced over her hair,
and for the first time in days—
Mathew looked almost like himself again.
The fever had nearly left him.
Pearl glanced at him and smiled.
“You know,” she said teasingly,
“you looked funny drinking that soup yesterday.”
Mathew scoffed.
“And you looked way too happy watching me suffer.”
Pearl laughed—
a sound as light as morning itself.
But suddenly—
Mathew stopped.
His eyes widened.
“Oh no.”
Pearl blinked.
“What happened?”
He groaned.
“I forgot my ID card…
and my notebook.”
Pearl sighed.
“Seriously?”
Mathew rubbed the back of his neck.
“Wait here under this tree.
I’ll be back in two minutes.”
Before she could answer—
he had already turned and run.
Pearl shook her head, smiling to herself,
then walked toward the giant tree standing by the roadside.
It was beautiful.
Its branches stretched wide like open arms,
covered in soft green leaves that shimmered under the morning light.
The sunlight slipped through them like broken pieces of gold,
and the breeze made them sway like whispers.
Pearl tilted her head up.
Her eyes sparkled.
“It’s beautiful…” she whispered.
Standing there—
alone beneath its shade,
wrapped in the quietness of the morning—
her heart felt strangely light.
Free.
And without realizing—
she began to hum.
That same melody.
Soft.
Sweet.
Dreamlike.
A sound so gentle it seemed to melt into the breeze itself,
wrapping around the empty street like a hidden secret—
waiting for the right soul to find it.
Across the road—
Leo was walking toward school.
Usually,
he never took this route.
It was longer.
Quieter.
Unnecessary.
But today—
something had pulled him there.
Something he couldn’t explain.
Maybe habit had abandoned him.
Or maybe—
fate had quietly taken his hand.
His hands rested in his pockets,
his mind unusually still—
until—
that melody.
Leo stopped.
Instantly.
His heartbeat stumbled.
That voice.
His eyes lifted sharply.
And there—
beneath the giant tree—
stood a girl with her back facing him.
Her soft hair moved with the morning wind,
and that melody flowed from her lips like sunlight touching water.
Leo’s breath caught.
It was her.
The girl from that morning.
The voice that had followed him through restless thoughts and sleepless silence.
And now—
for the first time—
she was real.
Right there.
Close enough to touch.
He stared for a moment,
almost afraid to move—
as if one step might break the spell.
Then—
he took that step.
This was it.
The moment he had unknowingly waited for.
He was finally going to see the face behind the melody.
But fate—
cruel and sharp—
cut through the moment.
A loud horn shattered the air.
A car stopped violently in front of him.
Leo stepped back.
The driver came out of the car, anger burning in his voice.
“Are you blind?
Look before crossing!”
Leo clenched his jaw.
“I’m sorry.”
But the man kept speaking.
Kept scolding.
Kept stealing seconds Leo could not afford to lose.
Leo’s eyes kept shifting past the car—
toward the tree.
Toward her.
He wanted to move.
Needed to.
But the man’s words trapped him there.
On the other side—
Pearl’s humming stopped.
Her brows furrowed.
She had heard the noise.
The raised voices.
Her eyes turned toward the road—
but a small crowd had already gathered,
blocking her view.
“What happened?” she murmured.
Just then—
Mathew returned.
“I’m back.”
Pearl looked at him.
“There’s something happening over there.”
Mathew glanced toward the road.
“Probably nothing serious.
Come on, we’ll be late.”
Pearl looked once more—
curiosity brushing softly against her heart.
But she saw nothing.
And so—
she turned away,
walking beside Mathew as if the moment had never happened.
A few moments later—
Leo finally stepped past the car.
His eyes searched the tree.
Empty.
She was gone.
Again.
Leo exhaled sharply,
frustration burning beneath his skin.
So close.
Closer than ever before.
Yet fate had stolen her away—
again.
But this time—
he knew one thing.
She lived here.
In the same town.
And she went to the same school.
That meant—
sooner or later—
the world would bring her back to him.
A faint smile touched his lips.
For the first time—
he gave her a name.
Melody Girl.
And somehow,
just thinking it
made warmth settle quietly inside his chest.
Leo lowered his gaze,
smiling to himself.
“Melody Girl…”
he whispered into the morning wind.
His dark eyes softened—
“We’ll meet soon.”
With Love Kiaan