"The Last Empty Seat It starts with rain, a crowded café, and one empty chair. Maya Arora is a quiet young woman in her early twenties who has grown comfortable with solitude. She sits alone at her usual table, coffee in hand, watching the world move around her. Every seat in the café is taken — except the one across from her. A stranger approaches. Calm, unhurried, slightly damp from the rain outside. He asks politely if he can sit. She says yes. They exchange almost nothing — just the small, forgettable courtesie

• Romance