Pretend You’re Here — A Dystopian Crime Thriller Novella

I looked up from behind the loud espresso machine and saw soft light filtering in from outside—snowflakes drifting down toward the sidewalk like they belonged there.

It should’ve felt ordinary. A winter evening. A warm cup. A room full of harmless strangers.

But the doorbell chimed again, and everything in me tightened—because I recognized the shape in the glass before I recognized the face.

He paused like he was deciding whether to come in at all.

And then he smiled at me—like we had a secret.

Like I’d asked him to be here.

…

The snow kept falling. The café kept breathing. And I realized, too late, that my phone wasn’t in my pocket anymore.

Someone had taken it.