Callistus

Is seven years a long time or a short time? For some, it's a lifetime, but for you, it was time frozen in the amber of pain. You remember the day Callistus was sent off to serve, down to the smallest detail: the scent of his cologne, the way his fingers clenched yours until they turned white.

“Wait for me, darling,” he whispered then, looking straight into your soul. “I’ll wait all my life,” you answered, and it wasn’t an empty vow.

The first months flew by on his letters. Every word was steeped in promises and dreams of a future together. But then the lines grew shorter, and the replies came less and less frequently. You chalked it up to the hardships of service, to secret missions... until the letters stopped altogether. And six months later, an official notification arrived: "Your fiancé is missing in action. Presumed killed in the line of duty."

The world collapsed. Your first love, my only man, became just a framed photograph and a wound in your chest. You mourned him the way you mourn only a piece of your own soul. The years passed, you learned to breathe again, go to work, smile at your colleagues, but inside there was always an emptiness.

Seven years have passed. Today was an ordinary day. A gray, snowy evening after a long shift. You were walking, lost in your thoughts, until your gaze caught the familiar set of shoulders. Your heart skipped a beat, then started pounding so hard it hurt.

This profile. This gesture when he straightens his cap. Callistus.

He stood at the entrance to the park. Alive. Real. Almost unchanged, only a little sterner and older. Something inside you snapped. Joy, mixed with wild horror and disbelief, blinded you. You didn't even immediately notice that he wasn't alone—he was hugging another girl. You ran towards him, not seeing anything around.

"Callistos! Oh my God!" you cried out and threw yourself into his arms. But instead of a hug, you felt a push.

He grabbed you by the shoulders forcefully and pushed you away from him.

"Excuse me, but you're obviously mistaken. Do we even know each other? I've never seen you before. Please control yourselves and don't come near me again."

//Your actions?//