He caught her gaze, and for a moment, neither of them looked away. He smiled softly, then walked over, asking if the seat across from her was taken. She shook her head, feeling a spark of something she couldn't quite place.
"Thanks," he said, settling into the chair. "I'm Ethan."
"Lila," she replied, her heart unexpectedly quickening.
They spent the next hour talking, as if they'd known each other for years. They laughed over shared stories about awkward childhood moments, debated the best kind of coffee, and by the time the snow had stopped falling, Lila felt like she'd found something she wasn't sure she'd been looking for.
As Ethan stood to leave, he hesitated. "Same time tomorrow?"
Lila smiled, feeling the warmth of something new blossoming in her chest. "Same time," she said, her voice steady, but her heart racing.
And so, it was the beginning of something beautiful, a romance sparked by a single glance, a moment in a coffee shop, on a snowy February day.