The man stared at the envelope in my hands.
I stared back.
Neither of us spoke for a moment.
The rain hammered against the café windows.
Finally, he walked toward me.
Slowly.
Carefully.
As if one wrong move would make the situation even more awkward.
"That's mine," he said.
I immediately stood up.
"Oh my God, I'm so sorry."
His eyes dropped to the open letter.
Then back to me.
"You read it."
It wasn't a question.
I felt my cheeks burn.
"A little."
His eyebrow rose.
I sighed.
"Okay... all of it."
To my surprise, he laughed.
Not an angry laugh.
A nervous one.
The kind people laugh when they don't know what else to do.
"Well," he said, pulling out a chair. "That's embarrassing."
I expected him to grab the letter and leave.
Instead, he sat down.
I blinked.
"You aren't angry?"
"Oh, I'm definitely embarrassed."
A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
"But if I survive this, I'll survive anything."
I couldn't help laughing.
For the first time, I really looked at him.
He was handsome.
Not in the movie-star kind of way.
In the way that made you feel comfortable.
Like someone you'd known for years.
He held out his hand.
"I'm Ethan."
I hesitated before shaking it.
"Maya."
His hand was warm.
Too warm.
The kind of warm that makes you suddenly aware you're holding it longer than necessary.
We both let go.
At the same time.
The awkwardness returned.
"So..." he said.
"So..." I replied.
We both laughed.
Again.
The waiter appeared and asked if Ethan wanted anything.
"Just coffee," he said.
Then he glanced at me.
"And maybe a second chance at keeping my private thoughts private."
I covered my face.
"Oh, please stop reminding me."
He smiled.
For the next hour, we talked.
About books.
Movies.
Bad first dates.
Dream jobs.
And somehow, without noticing, the rain stopped.
The café lights dimmed.
And closing time arrived.
Neither of us wanted to leave.
I could feel it.
The conversation had become easy.
Natural.
Dangerously natural.
Outside the café, we stood facing each other.
The city streets glowed under the streetlights.
For a moment neither of us moved.
Then Ethan reached into his pocket.
My heart skipped.
He pulled out a pen.
A pen.
Not a ring.
Not flowers.
A pen.
I silently laughed at myself.
Taking my hand gently, he wrote something on my palm.
A phone number.
"My handwriting is better in letters," he said.
I smiled.
"I'll be the judge of that."
For a second, his eyes held mine.
And suddenly the world felt very quiet.
Then his phone rang.
The sound shattered the moment.
He looked at the screen.
His smile disappeared.
Instantly.
His face went pale.
Very pale.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
He swallowed.
Nothing.
Then everything.
Because the woman on the phone shouted loud enough for me to hear.
"Ethan, where are you? Your fiancée has been looking for you all night!"
Fiancée?
My heart stopped.
Ethan looked horrified.
I looked confused.
And suddenly the man I had spent the entire evening falling for...
Was engaged to someone else.

Do you think Ethan is lying?
Comment YES or NO.