Kael walked with no destination in mind, just motion — as if movement could outrun memory. The sun bore down on his skin, and his clothes clung to him with sweat and city dust. His eyes scanned building after building, gate after gate, reading job posters, only to see the same words again and again:
"Experience required. Not hiring, position filled."
He had never imagined what rejection tasted like, not really, he had always been the golden boy, the one with options, the one who made others feel lucky just to be in his circle.
But now? Even the breeze seemed to avoid him.
---
He crossed the road distractedly, his mind wrapped around thoughts of his mother back at the motel. She hadn't said much since they were thrown out. She mostly lay quietly, eyes half-closed, like she was somewhere else, somewhere safer.
Kael didn't blame her.
He barely noticed the puddle until the SUV flew past, sending muddy water splashing inches from his feet. He stepped back quickly, startled, his shoes were soaked.
The SUV slowed down.
Great, he muttered under his breath. Maybe they want to finish the job, but to his surprise, the car reversed smoothly and came to a stop beside him.
The passenger window rolled down.
And there she was.
Sai.
Not the girl he once held hands with at private beach houses or took to rooftop dinners. Not the girl who had ignored his message when his world collapsed. This Sai looked... different. She wore a silk blouse, hair tied back under a sleek scarf, and large sunglasses masked most of her face. But Kael would've known that jawline, that softness in her voice, anywhere.
"Hey... are you okay?" she asked.
Kael froze. "Do I know you?"
Her lips parted slightly, either at the question or the sharpness of his tone. "You look familiar, that's all. But you look—" she hesitated, " like you've been through something."
Kael glanced away. "I am fine."
There was a short silence. Then she said, "Do you need a ride?"
He looked at her again. This had to be a joke.
"No," he said. "I don't think you can take me where I'm going."
But she didn't roll up the window. Didn't drive away.
"I wasn't trying to offend you," she said simply. "Sometimes people just... need to sit. And I have air conditioning."
Kael snorted unexpectedly, A dry, humorless sound. Still, after a long moment of hesitation, he walked around and got in.
---
The inside of the SUV smelled like roses and leather, It was cool, clean, and so far removed from the grime he carried on his skin that it made him uncomfortable.
She didn't speak right away, Just sat, eyes forward, hands in her lap, then: "You don't have to say anything. I just thought you looked like someone who needed a pause." He finally looked at her. "What's your name?"
She turned slightly toward him, lips curving. "Sai."
His stomach twisted.
The universe was laughing at him. But she clearly didn't recognize him, or if she did, she gave no sign.
"I am Kael," he said flatly.
She smiled again. "Nice to meet you, Kael."
He turned his head toward the window, swallowing all the questions boiling under his tongue.
They drove in silence for a while.
---
Eventually, she broke it. "My driver is leaving soon. My father's making me get someone else. It's a boring job, but… I think you'd be good at it."
Kael blinked. "You don't even know me."
She shrugged. "True. But I've met enough people to know which ones don't pretend. And I'd rather have someone real driving me around than someone who talks too much and watches me through the mirror."
He looked at her then, surprised. "You're offering me a job?"
"If you want it," she said. "You'd need to be there by 8am tomorrow. The pay's decent. We live just outside town gated estate. Ask for me at the security post."
She reached into her purse and handed him a small black card with an address scribbled on it.
He turned it over slowly in his hand.
"What if I'm terrible at driving?"
She gave a small shrug. "Then I guess I'll just have an interesting week."
---
When the car pulled to the curb, he stepped out and turned back to face her.
"Why me?" he asked. "Why stop?"
Sai hesitated.
"You looked like someone who used to be full of noise," she said. "But today you were quiet. That kind of silence... I know what it means."
The door clicked shut, and the car pulled away.
Kael stood at the roadside, holding the card like it was some kind of puzzle piece.
He looked up at the fading sky and whispered,
"Of all the roads I thought I'd take… I never imagined it would be behind her wheel."
That night, Kael sat beside his mother's bed, watching her chest rise and fall. He didn't tell her about the encounter. Not yet. But for the first time since their world crumbled, he tucked the black card under his pillow — a fragile symbol of possibility.
She hadn't asked for his story.
She hadn't flinched at his silence.
She'd just opened a door.
And somehow, that made all the difference.