The Woman He Can't Forget

A sudden chill ran down my spine—not because his voice was frightening, but because it was far too familiar.

From the dimly lit corner of the bar, he slowly sat up from the couch where he had been lying down. Still half-asleep, he rubbed his eyes and let out a soft sigh before fully sitting up.

And then, his face came into view.

I froze in place.

It felt like a bucket of cold water had been poured over me, locking me in place as I stood there in shock.

Of all the people I never thought I'd see again after so many years… it had to be him.

The very person I once hoped to forget.

The one I swore I never wanted to face again.

He ran a hand through his hair, slightly messing it up—and somehow, that only made him look even more attractive. Despite his casual outfit—a simple long-sleeved shirt and pants—his presence commanded the room.

Even with the stoic, unreadable expression on his face, his appeal hadn't faded in the slightest. He had always been striking, and even now, the defined muscles beneath his clothes were still noticeable.

He hadn't changed. Not really.

His cold eyes swept toward the group of men—Alpheus and his friends—and just like that, the teasing laughter died down. Everyone's attention shifted toward him in silence, as if his very presence demanded it.

The room stilled.

And all I could do was stare… at the man I thought I had buried in the past.

The man swept his gaze slowly across the room, taking in his surroundings with that same detached air. Then, his eyes gradually landed on me.

For a split second, I saw a flash of recognition and surprise flicker across his face. But it was gone just as quickly, buried beneath his usual cold, unreadable expression.

Maybe he realized we weren't alone.

Still, he kept staring at me—his eyes sharp and unreadable. The prolonged silence began to thicken the air.

His friends started to notice, especially Alpheus, who quickly stepped in to break the uncomfortable stillness.

"Uh, Rome! Glad you're finally awake!" Alpheus said with a light chuckle.

"Perfect timing—we're just about to start the fun."

Rome didn't respond. He simply glanced at Alpheus with that same frosty expression, then turned his eyes back to me.

Noticing this, Alpheus gave a small laugh.

"Oh right! She's the waitress working tonight. So let's be nice to her, alright? Let's not make her job harder than it already is." He stepped closer to me as he said this, almost protectively. And that was when Rome's gaze shifted.

He looked at the two of us, his eyes growing a little darker.

I caught the subtle clench of his jaw—the only real sign of emotion breaking through his cold exterior—as he stared at Alpheus.

Then, as if trying to lighten the mood, one of their friends casually threw an arm around Rome's shoulder with a loud laugh.

"Come on, man! Chill out!"

But Rome immediately shrugged him off, his expression unchanged. His cold aura was enough to make the other man back off with a sheepish chuckle.

"Geez! You know what, Rome?" one of his friends said with a teasing grin. "She's the waitress Alpheus used to talk about all the time—the one he used to stalk!"

Rome's brows immediately furrowed, and his clenched jaw tightened even more as his eyes darted sharply toward Alpheus.

Another friend, oblivious to the mood, also added with a loud laugh, "Looks like Alpheus beat you to it, man! While you're still out there searching for the one who dumped you, he's already found his!"

The room fell into an awkward silence. No one expected someone to actually bring that up.

The already chilly air grew even colder. Rome's gaze locked onto the guy who had spoken.

"Shut up, Calyx. You don't know what you're talking about." Rome said, his voice low but sharp. His fists clenched tightly as if he were barely holding himself back from exploding.

Their other friends glanced at the guy named Calyx, their eyes silently urging him to stop talking.

But Calyx just shrugged, completely unaware of the growing tension.

"What? I didn't say anything wrong. I'm just telling the truth, aren't I? While you're still stuck chasing after the girl who left you, why not just do what Alpheus did—move on and find someone else?"

"Shut up. You don't know what the hell you're talking about, fucker." Rome growled in a low, sharp tone.

Sensing the tension rising, one of their friends quickly stepped in and walked over to Rome.

"Hahaha, chill, Rome! You just woke up and you're already in a bad mood? Relax! We don't want to keep Ms. Beautiful waiting too long, so let's just order something to drink." he said, trying to calm Rome down as he gently pried open his clenched fist and jokingly gave him a back massage.

But Rome immediately shoved him away.

Rome's eyes shifted toward me—something their cheeky friend quickly noticed. To divert Rome's attention, he playfully messed up his hair.

"Come on, Rome, don't stare at Ms. Beautiful like that—you might scare her off." he teased.

Rome immediately fixed his hair, then shot his friend a sharp glare, but his friend only slung an arm around his shoulders.

"The fuck is wrong with you, Alfonso?! Get off me!" Rome snapped, brushing Alfonso's arm off his shoulder.

"Let's chill, bros—especially you, Rome. It's Dave's birthday, and we're about to ruin the good vibes. We should be having fun!" Alfonso said, gesturing toward the birthday celebrant who was quietly chuckling off to the side.

"Hahaha! Let's just gang up on Rome to wake him up and shake off that bad mood!" Dave finally chimed in as he walked over to Rome.

The rest of the group followed suit.

With just one look, they all seemed to silently agree. Mischievous grins spread across their faces as they slowly closed in on Rome to try and lift him up.

"The fuck!" Rome blurted out, helpless as his friends ganged up on him.

"Hey, stop it! You fuckers, let me down!"

After a long round of playful roughhousing, the group finally noticed I'd been standing quietly nearby the whole time, waiting to take their order.

"Uhm… excuse me, sirs… Sorry to interrupt, but would you still like to order some drinks?" I asked politely, having been waiting for quite a while while they horsed around.