Dominique took the lantern, feeling the weight of its paper and the promise it held. She unfolded it, whispered a wish—a simple, heartfelt hope that their love would remain a partnership of creativity, support, and shared dreams—and set it free.

“It looks like a promise you haven’t kept yet,” he said, half‑joking, half‑serious.

Dominique paused, her pencil hovering over a blank spot in her sketch. “What if the missing piece is someone else?”