He stopped three steps from her, close enough to see the light catch in her dark, smooth hair that was pulled back just enough to look neat, while she talked with the group and laughed softly.
There was a small line near her eye when she smiled, a detail he remembered instantly, and seeing it again hit him like daylight breaking through cloud, sudden and too bright to ignore.
He breathed in slowly and then too fast, aware of how large his hands felt as he folded them once and fidgeted, trying to ground himself in the simple act of standing still.
"I shouldn't-" he told himself, then followed with quieter excuses like "She's busy" and "I'll wait," repeating small lies that were meant to steady his feet but failed completely.
His jaw tightened while his fingers rubbed the strap of his bag, and the sounds of the room wrapped around him with clinking glasses, humming music, distant laughter, and the scrape of a chair.
He kept repeating the mantra in his head, telling himself he was fine, yet he knew he was not, because every nerve in his body seemed to recognize the truth before his mind could deny it.
He watched her speak with a gentle voice that drew the group closer, her gestures warm and unforced, and he could tell she knew them and they knew her, creating a circle where she naturally shone.
Daryl felt like an intruder standing on a familiar stage that did not belong to him, watching a scene that had been rehearsed without his presence in mind.
Then Kang Wei noticed him from a short distance away, catching Daryl's glance and tilting his head with a knowing look that was neither surprised nor theatrical, just quietly aware.
Kang Wei smiled in a way that said I see you, and Daryl stiffened as heat rose under his skin while Kang Wei began moving with quiet, purposeful steps across the room.
The moment felt both small and enormous as Kang Wei crossed the distance, and Daryl watched with his neck muscles tight, understanding that something was about to change whether he was ready or not.
Kang Wei reached Lian Yue and greeted her lightly, saying it had been a while, and her face opened with genuine pleasure as she turned and exclaimed his name in surprise.
They exchanged warm words that stayed safely in the realm of small talk, touching on campus news, a new startup, and an absurd seminar, while Kang Wei teased and she laughed brightly.
That laugh struck Daryl hard, and he noticed how Kang Wei's shoulders relaxed as they spoke, moving together with the ease of a practiced pair.
Kang Wei's voice slowed as his tone shifted, and he said there was someone he wanted her to meet, causing Lian Yue's eyes to flick toward him with open curiosity.
Her gaze swept the room until it found Daryl, and time softened as everything else blurred, her pupils widening before recognition settled across her face.
"Daryl?" she breathed, the name sounding like a question as she lifted a small hand in a quiet wave that crossed the space between them.
Daryl froze with air lodged in his throat and his heart hammering, hearing nothing until the music returned faintly and the room's sounds followed after.
Kang Wei grinned and gently urged him forward, teasing just enough to act as a dare, while Daryl's mouth went dry and he forced himself to breathe.
He straightened and pulled his shoulders back, trying to look like someone who belonged here, even as the lie caught halfway and refused to fully settle.
He moved forward, each step loud in his mind, fighting the urge to turn back or stumble as people noticed him with curious glances and polite smiles.
He kept walking while thinking of nothing and everything at once, breathing until he could speak, watching her grow closer with every step.
Up close he noticed the curve of her lip when she listened and the slight tilt of her head when she thought, and she asked how he was with surprised warmth.
"Yes," he said after swallowing, answering her quieter confirmation that it was really him, while Kang Wei stayed back and allowed the group to drift away.
She reached out for a handshake that turned into a brief, instinctive hug, and he registered her warmth and the scent of coffee and something floral lifting what he had kept buried.
"You look good," she said simply, and the words landed like a soft stone inside him as he thanked her and followed her toward a quieter corner.
They found a small table that felt like an island amid the hum of conversation and passing waiters, and he studied her face as the pieces he remembered joined together.
She was not the same girl he had known briefly, carrying now a steadiness in her posture and a life that showed itself in subtle lines and quiet confidence.
They sat without speaking for a moment until she admitted she could not believe it was really him, her voice trembling slightly from surprise rather than nerves.
They laughed softly together, embarrassed and relieved, as Kang Wei retreated with an amused look and gave them space to fill.
She asked how he had been with a directness that carried weight, and he answered cautiously with "I'm Alive, I guess." earning a smile that encouraged him to continue.
He wanted to tell her everything about the last year, the fear, the money, the victories and losses, but instead he offered the honest bones of working, freelancing, and trying things.
She listened without judgment, asking practical questions about streaming and watching him closely as he explained nights, comments, fear, and persistence.
When she asked if he enjoyed it, he surprised himself by answering yes, and her reply that it sounded brave struck him warmly despite his own doubts.
They drifted into easier conversation as Kang Wei returned briefly with a joke, and time settled into a gentle rhythm of memory and shared laughter.
She spoke of classes, internships, and projects with measured humor and focus, while Daryl searched her for signs of distance or closure and found only presence.
He felt seen and exposed in a way that was not painful, and when she leaned in to tell him something important, he leaned in too as time stretched.
Music shifted, a waiter passed, laughter rose elsewhere, and her unfinished sentence hovered as the world narrowed around the space between them.