By the time Ivan reached the park, he was already thirty minutes late.
The delay sat uneasily in him, though he wasn't sure whether it was the lateness itself or everything else weighing on him.
The place was quiet, almost unnaturally so, with darkness settling in fully. Streetlights cast soft halos across the empty paths, stretching shadows across the ground.
The stillness made every small sound feel louder- the crunch of gravel beneath his shoes, the faint rustle of leaves, the distant hum of a passing car far beyond the park.
A single vehicle stood parked near the far end.
His phone vibrated in his hand, pulling his attention down, a message lit up the screen.
~In the car.
Short and straight to the point.
Ivan exhaled slowly, but it did nothing to steady the restless rhythm of his heart. Lately, it had become second nature for it to race like this, as if it had forgotten how to exist in a calm, steady state.
