New York City was raining again - thin, uncertain drops, as if the city itself didn't know whether it was crying or just sighing. Through the fogged windows of the gallery, the street seemed unreal - a blurred watercolor. Somewhere in the back of the building, water dripped from an old pipe, echoing the humming rhythm of a heart that couldn't decide whether to break or keep beating.

After that night. It was as if the magic knot that bound them together had imperceptibly begun to loosen.

Emily was coming in earlier and leaving later. Sebastian, though still around, had become almost a ghost - dry instructions, occasional correspondence, formal discussions of new work. Their gallery, once a place of inspiration, now seemed like an icy chessboard where every step required caution.

She avoided his gaze. He avoided her touch. Everything became skewed: words seemed too sharp, gestures too measured.

In the evening, when the gallery was empty, Emily lingered at the spot where her favorite painting used to be. 

- Why? - she whispered quietly. - Why can a millimeter be an insurmountable chasm?

- Because sometimes fear is greater than love," she said behind her.

She turned around. Sebastian was standing in the shadows. His coat was wet from the rain and his eyes were tired. But there was something else in them-something she hadn't seen in a long time: pain, insecurity...a desire to make things right.

- You're avoiding me," she said.

- And you're avoiding the truth," he said stiffly. - I don't know what you want, Emily. For me to be different? Silent, perfect? That I don't have a past?

- I want you to be real. Not this man who pulls away every time I get close. I'm...afraid of losing again.

For a second - long as an eternity - tension hovered between them. Sebastian took a step, but then backed away. He lowered his gaze.

- I don't know how to be close without destroying everything. Too much in me is broken.

- But I'm not asking you to be whole. I'm asking you to be - with me.

He didn't answer. Just stared - long, as if seeing her like that for the first time. Vulnerable, strong, real. And then... just walked out into the rain. No umbrella. No goodbye.

Emily was alone. Only the silence of the gallery and her breathing, ragged and heavy. She realized something had broken. And it was no longer certain if it could be repaired.

A fault line passed between them - thin, almost imperceptible. But every day it grew deeper.