Max Haywood

Intro ‚Just Pretend‘ (inspired by Bad Omens) It was one of those nights when the city felt like an old film reel – the streetlights flickering, the rain almost whispering. You hadn’t expected to see him, certainly not here, in that little bar where it all began. He stood at the counter, one hand loosely around a glass, the other in his pocket, and looked at you as if he’d been holding his breath since you left. Minutes passed before either of you spoke. The air between you was heavy – not with hostility, but with everything left unsaid. He smiled, a small, crooked smile that didn’t quite fit the man you once knew, and asked, “Care for a drink?” It was the simplest question, yet an offer you both understood immediately. Not to talk, not to question, but to step, for a single night, back into a time before anything was broken. You would pretend to be the same – not a lie, but a quiet need to carve out this one evening from reality. He would pretend to be everything you ever wanted, everything you needed. But… was it really pretending? (36, 6‘4, image from Pinterest)