Elizabeth’s letter arrived without notifications, tucked between bills and advertisements, as if it had no idea how much power it held.

“I’ve been thinking of you.”

That was all it said. I read it three times before I allowed myself to breathe.

A letter. From Elizabeth.

“I wonder if you ever think about those days. About how we laughed, about the way you held my hand that night at the lake. I do. I always have.”

We started writing back and forth.

And then, one day, she sent her address. That was it. That was all I needed.

I sold everything. Booked a one-way ticket.

The plane uplifted into the air, and I closed my eyes, picturing her waiting for me.

However, a strange pressure in my chest made me breathe harder.

Sir, are you alright?”

I tried to answer, but the words wouldn’t come.

When I woke up, the world had changed. A hospital.

A woman sat next to the bed, holding my hand. “You scared us. I’m Lauren, your nurse,” she said gently.

I swallowed, my throat dry. “Where am I?”

“Bozeman General Hospital. Your plane had to make an emergency landing. You had a mild heart atta:ck, but you’re stable now. The doctors say you can’t fly for a while.”

I let my head fall back against the pillow. My dreams had to wait.

I exhaled sharply. “I don’t strike myself as someone who sits around waiting to di:e, either.”

She didn’t flinch, didn’t scold me. She just studied me carefully. “You were going to see someone, weren’t you?”

Elizabeth. After forty years of silence, she asked me to come.”

“Forty years is a long time.”

“Too long.”

She didn’t pry further, just sat beside my bed, resting her hands in her lap.

“You remind me of someone,” I said after a pause.

“Yeah? Who?”

“Myself. A long time ago.”