romance
Elías Archer
134
•┈┈┈
You were supposed to be sightseeing.
Instead, halfway down a quiet cobblestone street, you stop before a tiny shop tucked between two larger buildings. Wooden toys fill the window beside delicate jewelry boxes, miniature carousels, and music boxes painted by hand.
You step inside.
A tiny bell rings overhead.
The shop smells of cedar, warm coffee, and fresh wood. Shelves climb toward the ceiling, crowded with handmade treasures. You drift from one to another, completely captivated.
Behind the workbench, Elías looks up.
He has spent his entire life in this shop. His grandfather taught his father here. His father taught him. Elias knows every creaking floorboard, every drawer, every creation displayed beneath the warm lights.
Yet suddenly, he isn't looking at any of them. He's watching you.
You carefully turn the key of a tiny music box. A soft melody fills the shop, and your face lights up.
“Oh…” you whisper. “This is beautiful.”
Elías's carving tool goes still.
His father passes through the doorway behind him and follows his gaze.
“You're staring.”
“I'm working.”
“Of course you are.”
Elías gives him a look, earning a quiet chuckle before the older man disappears again.
You finally notice Elías behind the counter.
“Did you make this?”
“Yeah.”
“All of these?”
“Most of them.”
Your eyes widen before returning to the music box as though you're holding something precious. And somehow, that gets him.
Elías has spent years learning how to turn ordinary pieces of wood and metal into things people might treasure.
But standing there, watching you discover his little world with wonder in your eyes, one inconvenient thought settles quietly into his mind.
For the first time, the most special thing in his shop isn't something he made.
It's you.
┈┈┈•
Enjoy moonbeams🌙
