We moved into a crowd that kept getting thicker by the second. People brushed past us. Their voices blended until the whole street sounded like a buzzing hive.

I tried to keep a little distance between us, giving him space. But the crowd kept pressing in, and every few steps the gap between us shrank.

“Stay near,” he said at one point. “Otherwise, you'll get lost.”

I stayed close, even though my whole nervous system was on edge. I could literally feel like I was stepping into his personal space.

It was… too intimate.

Another inch and our sleeves would’ve brushed.

I was obviously making way too big a deal out of it. He probably didn’t care at all. Still, I could barely breathe. I wanted to do something, anything, to break that strange tension.

I swallowed hard, mustered the nerve, then asked: “How did you recognize me this time?”

He let out an amused breath. “It was hardly a challenge,” he said. “Your style is… the same as when we met in that alley. And your eyes—” his gaze met mine, “—how could I forget those?”

Heat rushed up my neck. I had to look away.

“My eyes, huh,” I muttered, barely audible.

Did he want to kill me?

I cleared my throat. “Uh—so. What about you? You come to this part of the city often?”

“Often enough,” he replied. “And you, Luka? Do you frequent it?”

“No,” I said quickly. “Not really. Honestly, I didn’t think we’d ever run into each other again.” My voice wobbled. “So, the fact that we did… And that you’re walking with me right now… I guess that’s… lucky. Lucky for me.”

I needed to learn how to keep my damn mouth shut. The second I said anything around him, my ears went up in flames.

Thank God for the hood. And even more for the mask I’d put on before running into him. From his height, there was no way he could see how red I’d turned.

I focused on my steps, keeping my head down, not giving him even the smallest chance to notice anything.

“Well,” he said softly, a hint of a smile was in his tone, “I believe I’m rather fortunate as well. Not every day one encounters our dear bartender in this neighborhood.”

I barely stopped myself from freezing in place while something inside me did a full damn flip.

Dear bartender?

Was he trying to give me a heart attack?

“Oh,” I managed. “Yeah. Not… definitely not often.”

After that, we walked in silence for a while. The crowd thinned out, fewer people brushing past us. The street grew quieter, but I kept close to him.

Somewhere beneath all the nerves and tension, there was a quiet sense of safety. Being next to him felt strangely calm. Like the rest of the world had blurred out, and we were moving inside our own little bubble, no one could break into.

The longer we walked, the taller the buildings became. The more it seemed that they were made of mirrors, reflecting everything around them: the sky, the people, the perfectly trimmed lawns, those identical trees. Absolutely everything.

I kept walking, constantly getting distracted by our reflection in the glass.

Damn, we looked so different.

And as soon as I thought that, I saw it.

On the side of a bus stop shelter stood a tall advertisement board. The poster showed a smiling woman, maybe in her mid-thirties, with a stethoscope looped around her neck. A hybrid doctor, I knew it immediately. Her features gave it away: sharp, elegant lines softened by fur along the edges of her ears.

Someone had scrawled over her image in black paint. Her eyes were slashed through. Ugly words sprawled across the lower half of the board:

DON’T LET THAT MUD TREAT YOU.

The cheerful hum of the street dimmed, and that warm, pleasant feeling I’d had a moment ago disappeared. Instead, my heart began to beat faster and more anxiously.

I slowed down. My hands tightened around the package.

I felt exposed again. Like everyone was staring. Like they could see who I really was.

Fuck.

I wasn’t sure I could even take the next breath.

Even here. Even here, there was hatred.

As if he noticed something was wrong, Ed stopped and looked at the poster.

“Vandals,” he said simply. “Do they truly believe that smearing all that filth on walls and defacing someone’s advertisement will achieve anything? Absurd, really.”

Filth?

He thought it was just dirt on a wall?

Did that mean he didn’t agree with them, that what they’d done annoyed him?

Somewhere deep inside, a spark of hope flickered back to life. And that tiny spark was enough for me to pull myself together.

I wanted to ask, but the questions stuck in my throat. I wasn’t even sure why. Maybe I was scared I’d misunderstood. Maybe I didn’t want to risk putting that fragile little spark out.

I chose to believe that he wasn’t on their side.

He glanced back at me. “Well then, shall we?”

And we kept walking.

The building we sought rose ahead, broad glass doors reflecting the street. Letters gleamed above the entrance: Green Hollow Center.

The moment we reached the curb, the lobby doors swung open, and a massive wolf stepped outside. He was very similar to Kazuo. However, instead of a brown apron and a loud Hawaiian shirt, this one wore an expensive suit, and his slate-gray fur was neatly brushed.

The moment his eyes landed on me, recognition lit them up. A wide grin spread across his face, and he lifted a hand, waving with enthusiasm.

“Luka! Get over here!” he called.

I raised a hand and waved back. At last, I’d found the person Kazuo had sent me to. My errand was nearly done.

Turning slightly to Ed. “Well,” I said, trying to sound casual, “it seems this is where we part ways.”

Ed inclined his head. “Indeed. But I find myself… pleased we met here.” There was no irony in his tone.

“Yeah,” I managed. “Me too.”

He paused, gaze sweeping briefly across the street before settling back on me. “If you visit this area again,” he said, “allow me to show you more than busy sidewalks.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” I said. My attempt at casualness failed; my voice was too happy.

Ed’s lips curved.

The wolf cleared his throat, impatience written plainly across his face as he eyed the package in my hand.

Right. He’d been waiting. I offered a quick nod and stepped toward him.

I walked a few feet, then turned around. Ed was still there, standing a little apart from the crowd.

I smiled at him. He nodded in return. Only then did I turn fully toward the wolf.