Kael stared at the waiter for a few seconds, his eyes narrowing slightly as if he was trying to recognize something familiar in his face, until suddenly his expression shifted.
"Denis?" he said out loud, surprised.
The waiter's face lit up instantly.
"Yes!"
He quickly placed the menus and the ordering tablet on the table, and before I could even react, Kael stood up and pulled him into a warm hug.
"It's been so long… I didn't recognize you at first" Kael said with a small laugh.
Denis stepped back, smiling, before his gaze shifted toward me for a brief moment, then back to Kael as he leaned closer and whispered
"Is she your girlfriend?"
Kael froze slightly.
A faint blush appeared on his face.
And I turned my head toward the window, pretending I hadn't heard anything, even though my heart reacted faster than I wanted.
"No… no, Denis," Kael whispered back quickly."She's my neighbor."
Denis nodded with a small grin, clearly amused, before straightening himself again.
"Alright, I'll let you enjoy your evening. It's really nice seeing you again, Kael. We should catch up."
"Tomorrow" Kael replied without hesitation."We could go to Rome."
Denis smiled, gave a thumbs up, and left to continue his work.
For a moment, silence settled between us.
Then Kael slowly reached for the golden book, placing it gently at the center of the table before opening it to the first page.
"Liora," he said calmly.
I turned my gaze from the window back to him.
"Yes?"
"Take this."
He handed me the small flashlight.
"Turn it on… and point the light at the page."
Curious, I did exactly what he asked.
And then
Letters began to appear.
My eyes widened as words slowly revealed themselves on the blank page, forming a title written in elegant script.
"Golden Love."
"What… is this?" I whispered, looking up at him.
"It's a novel" he replied quietly."My grandmother wrote it. She was an author… and my mother loved this book, even if it was… unusual."
I turned the pages slowly, watching the hidden text appear under the light, reading a few lines, trying to understand how something like this was even possible.
"It must be interesting…"
"Yeah..." he said softly."And it's the only thing I have left of her."
Without thinking, I turned off the flashlight.
At that exact moment, a waitress passed near our table, carrying drinks for another group of customers
And suddenly, she tripped.
Everything happened too fast.
The tray slipped from her hands.
Glasses shattered against the table.
Liquid spilled everywhere.
On the book.
On the pages.
On my clothes.
I gasped, frozen in shock, my eyes immediately drawn to the golden book, now soaked and stained.
The waitress stood up in panic.
"I'm so sorry! I'm so, so sorry"
Other staff rushed in to clean the mess, but I barely noticed them.
All I could see
Was Kael.
Looking at the ruined book.
"This is… a disaster…" I murmured.
"I'm really sorry…" the waitress repeated, her voice trembling as she tried to help clean.
Denis returned quickly, holding our trays, and stopped when he saw the scene.
"…Come" he said gently."I'll take you to another table."
We stood up.
Kael picked up the book carefully.
Then looked at me.
"You're soaked…"
I glanced at my dress, embarrassed, but tried to brush it off.
"Everyone saw what happened… it's fine."
He stepped closer.
His gaze softened.
And then
With his thumb, he gently wiped a drop of juice from my chin.
My breath caught.
The contact was warm.
Soft.
Unexpected.
"…Thank you" I whispered.
He tilted his head slightly.
"You didn't even notice it?"
"…No…"
He smiled faintly, then turned and walked toward the new table where Denis was waiting.
We finally sat down again and started eating, the atmosphere calmer, even though the book was now resting near the heater, slowly drying, its condition still worrying.
"Tell me," I said after a moment,"aren't you upset about the book?"
He looked at me while chewing, then swallowed before answering.
"Not really… well, maybe a little."
His voice sounded different.
Quieter.
Almost disappointed.
"But you can still read the text, right?" I asked.
He looked at the book again.
"I have no idea."
A pause.
"But it doesn't matter that much."
He took a sip of his drink.
Then added, almost hesitating
"I brought you here to show you what it was. You would have never known without the flashlight."
Another silence.
Then his gaze returned to me.
And this time, there was something deeper in his expression.
"…It's a shame" he said softly,"…that you got stained more than the book."