"I tried so hard to make her happy, to be the daughter she wanted to be, but no matter what I did, it wasn't enough. She'd praise one minute and then tear down the next. It ssed with my head for a long ti."
Hana's voice faltered for a mont, but she pushed through, her gaze steady on the table. "I left as soon as I could, got a job, went to college. I thought I was free, but those things she said... they stick with you, you know?"
Andrew nodded. He understood all too well how the past could linger, how the voices of those who hurt you could echo in your mind long after they were gone.
Hana's voice softened. "But then I t you. And I saw how you put yourself into your work, how you keep going, even after everything. It made realize that maybe we're not broken in the way we think we are. Maybe we're just... piecing ourselves back together."
Andrew stared at her for a long mont, the words sinking in. He had never thought of it that way. All this ti, he had seen himself as damaged, as soone who would never be whole again. But here was Hana, standing in front of him, offering him a new perspective-one where healing wasn't about erasing the scars, but about building sothing new from the pieces.
"I don't know if I'll ever be whole," Andrew said quietly, his voice thick with emotion. "But I want to try."
Hana smiled at him, her eyes glistening slightly in the dim light of the garage. " too." They stood in silence for a while, the quiet hum of the garage wrapping around them like a blanket. There was sothing unspoken between them, a shared understanding that they didn't need to voice. They both carried their pasts with them, but maybe, just maybe, they didn't have to carry them alone anymore.
Hana picked up the sandpaper again, her movents slower, more deliberate this ti. Andrew followed suit, and together, they worked in comfortable silence, smoothing the rough edges of the wood.
After a while, Hana glanced up at him, a playful glint in her eyes. "You know, I think this table might be the best one yet. I an, it's got two artists working on it now."
Andrew laughed softly, the sound lightening the air between them. "I don't know if 'artist' is the right word for ."
Hana smirked, her expression teasing. "Well, you're definitely sothing special. I an, how many guys can make a table look like it belongs in a museum?"
Andrew shook his head, but there was a smile on his face now-a real one, not the half- hearted one he used to hide behind. He looked down at the table again, his fingers brushing over the smooth wood. It wasn't finished yet, but it was coming together.
At that mont, he was assaulted by a giant desire to ask Hana to go out with him, and before he could think more about it, he blurted, "Hey, d-do you want to go out with soti?"
Andrew froze when he realized what he had just done, he didn't even think when he asked that, he was about to apologize to Hana when he heard her answer.
"Of course!" She said with a bright smile, "I'd love to!"
Back to Mafra Q Hall, where Moonlight was performing 'Perfect'.
Hana swayed gently to the music, her body moving in ti with the rhythm. Andrew watched her, srized. He had always admired her from a distance- the way she carried herself with such confidence, the way she laughed so easily, the way she could make him feel lighter just by being near. But tonight, standing here with her, he realized sothing he hadn't fully acknowledged before.
He was in love with her.
The thought hit him like a bolt of lightning, sudden and powerful. He had spent so much of his life avoiding love, convinced that it would only lead to pain. But now, here he was, standing next to the one person who had made him believe that maybe, just maybe, love could be different this ti.
He wanted to tell her. He wanted to tell her how much she ant to him, how much she had changed his life. But the words stuck in his throat, his heart pounding with both fear and anticipation. What if he ssed this up? What if he said the wrong thing?
"I found a girl, beautiful and sweet..."
Moonlight's voice continued to drift through the air, the romantic lyrics wrapping around the crowd like a warm embrace. Couples all around them were holding each other close, so swaying gently, others lost in their own little worlds.
Andrew felt the weight of the mont pressing down on him. This was it. If he was ever going to tell Hana how he felt, it had to be now.
But before he could gather the courage to speak, Hana turned to him, her eyes soft and filled with sothing Andrew couldn't quite place. "This song," she said quietly, her voice barely audible over the music. "It's beautiful."
Andrew nodded, his throat tight. "It is."
She smiled at him, and for a mont, the world seed to slow down. It was just the two of them, standing there in the crowd, surrounded by thousands of people, yet sohow completely alone. The noise of the concert faded into the background, and all that mattered was this mont.
Moonlight reached the chorus, and the crowd began to sing along, their voices mingling with his in a beautiful harmony.
"Baby, I'm dancing in the dark..."
"With you between my arms..."
Andrew swallowed hard, his heart pounding. He knew what he had to do. He had to tell her.
He took a deep breath, gathering every ounce of courage he had left, and turned to Hana. "Hana," he said softly, his voice shaking slightly.
She looked up at him, her expression curious but patient, as though she knew sothing important was coming.
Andrew's hands felt clammy, and his heart raced. But he pushed through the nerves, the fear of rejection, the ghosts of his past that had told him love wasn't for him. This was different.
Hana was different.
"I-" His voice cracked slightly, but he forced himself to continue. "I know this is our first date, but... I've been thinking about this for a while."
Hana's expression softened even more, her gaze never leaving his.
"I never thought I'd feel this way about anyone," Andrew continued, his words tumbling out
in a rush. "But you... you've changed everything for ."
Her eyes widened slightly, but she remained quiet, letting him speak.
"I'm not good at this," he admitted, his voice a little shaky. "But what I'm trying to say is... I think I'm falling in love with you, Hana. And I don't want to be afraid of it anymore."
For a mont, there was only silence. The music still played softly in the background, but Andrew couldn't hear it over the sound of his own heartbeat thudding in his ears. He had never been more vulnerable in his life, and the weight of the confession hung in the air
between them.
Then, slowly, Hana's lips curled into a soft smile. "Andrew," she whispered, stepping closer to him. "You don't have to be afraid."
She reached up and placed her hand on his cheek, her touch gentle and reassuring. "I'm falling
for you too."
Andrew's breath caught in his throat. He had been bracing himself for rejection, but instead, he was t with warmth, acceptance, and sothing that felt dangerously close to love.
A wave of relief and joy washed over him, and before he could stop himself, he pulled Hana
into his arms. She lted into the embrace, her head resting against his chest as they swayed
gently to the music.
Moonlight's voice soared through the hall, carrying the final chorus with it.
"I have faith in what I see..."
"Now I know I have t an angel in person..."
Andrew held Hana close, his heart full. The doubts, the fears, the pain of his past-it all
seed to fade away in that mont. For the first ti in a long ti, he felt whole. He felt like he had found sothing worth holding onto.
As the final notes of "Perfect" echoed through the hall, Andrew leaned down and whispered softly in Hana's ear. "Will you be my girlfriend?"
She pulled back slightly, just enough to look up at him with a bright smile. "Yes," she
whispered. "I'd love to."
They didn't need words after that. As the music faded and the crowd erupted into applause,
Andrew and Hana stood there, wrapped in each other's arms, dancing slowly to the rhythm of
their own hearts.
And in that mont, everything was perfect.
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