Then she noticed something.
Across the street, an elderly woman was standing beneath the entrance of a small bakery.
The woman was holding a paper bag in one hand and an umbrella in the other. She was smiling.
Emma couldn’t understand why.
It was raining.
The sidewalk was crowded.
The weather was miserable.
Yet the woman looked genuinely happy.
A few seconds later, a man came out of the bakery carrying another small bag. He appeared to be around the same age as the woman.
When he reached her, he smiled.
She handed him the umbrella.
He took her hand.
Together, they slowly walked down the street.
Emma watched them disappear around the corner.
It was nothing extraordinary.
There was no grand romantic gesture.
No expensive restaurant.
No vacation.
No celebration.
Just two people walking together on a rainy morning.
And somehow, Emma couldn’t stop thinking about them.
Later that afternoon, she received a message from her mother.
“Are you coming for dinner this weekend?”
Emma almost replied that she was busy.
She had work to finish.
She had things to organize.
She had been meaning to catch up on several tasks.
Her first instinct was to say no.
Then she remembered the couple walking in the rain.
