Ashes in the Rain
By Olivia Salter
Word Count: 657
A twin flame is a spiritual concept describing a deep soul connection between two individuals, believed to be two halves of the same soul. Unlike soulmates, twin flames are thought to mirror each other's strengths and weaknesses, often leading to intense and transformative experiences.
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Some people spend their whole lives searching for something unnamed. Others spend their whole lives running from it.
Nadine had never decided which one she was.
The rain had slowed, but the scent of wet earth clung to Lawrenceville, Georgia, thick and sweet, like honeysuckle left too long in the sun. Inside a quiet cafe on Crogan Street, she curled her fingers around her chai mug, its warmth doing little to chase away the chill coiling in her chest.
She wasn’t waiting for anyone. But she felt like she had been waiting forever.
The bell above the door chimed. A gust of crisp air stirred the scent of espresso and damp wool. Nadine looked up—and her breath caught.
The man in the doorway shook droplets from his jacket, scanning the cafe with the air of someone who had just stepped into a place he didn’t mean to find. Then his gaze landed on hers.
The moment their eyes met, something in her body locked tight. A jolt—not fear, not attraction, but something deeper. A shift, like a door opening in a house she didn’t remember living in.
Her fingers clenched around the ceramic of her mug, but the warmth didn’t reach her anymore. Her chest ached with the weight of something unspoken.
The name came to her lips like an echo from a place she had never been.
"Julius."
He froze mid-step. His brow furrowed, breath hitching just slightly.
She could see the moment the same recognition hit him. The same tension coiling in his shoulders. The same wariness in his eyes, like a man staring at a ghost.
His mouth opened, then closed. He took another step forward, then stopped, as if he wasn’t sure if he wanted to come closer or turn and leave.
"Do I know you?" His voice was even, careful, but something frayed at the edges.
Nadine forced herself to swallow. "I don’t think so."
Liar.
The silence between them stretched, too thick, too charged. The cafe moved around them—baristas steaming milk, conversations buzzing, silverware clinking—but none of it reached her.
Julius exhaled sharply and ran a hand over his jaw. After a moment, he pulled out the chair across from her, moving like a man stepping over broken glass.
"May I?"
She nodded, pulse thrumming at the base of her throat.
Up close, the details of him sharpened—faint scar along his jaw, the slight unevenness in his nose, the roughness of his knuckles. He smelled like rain and something darker, something she couldn’t name but almost recognized.
"Have we met before?" he asked, voice quieter now.
Her fingers traced the rim of her mug. "Not in this life."
Julius didn’t flinch. If anything, his posture stiffened, the muscle in his jaw ticking.
"You believe in that?" he asked. "Past lives?"
She let out a slow breath. "I don’t know what I believe. But I know this isn’t normal."
Julius dragged a hand down his face. "Yeah," he muttered. "Feels like I’ve been looking for something I couldn’t name. And now that I see you…" He exhaled roughly, shaking his head. "I don’t know if I found it or if I’m about to lose myself."
A shiver curled down Nadine’s spine. Twin flames. The phrase surfaced in her mind, uninvited. She’d read about them once—how they weren’t gentle love stories, but wildfires. How they burned too bright, too fast. How they weren’t meant to heal, but to unravel.
Maybe that’s why a part of her wanted to run.
Julius must have sensed it, because he leaned back slightly, fingers tapping against the table, like he wasn’t sure whether to stay or pull away.
His voice was quieter now, edged with something like hesitation. "What if we’re not ready for this?"
Nadine stared down at her mug, watching the steam twist and fade.
"Then we’ll burn each other down."
Outside, the rain had stopped. But the scent of smoke lingered in the air.
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