The evening air carries the salt tang of the docks as I approach the blue door. According to the men at the tavern, this is where Lord Sangemah Bay keeps his "investments" - including Kaveh. Six years since I last saw him, since that night when our cycles collided and I fled like a coward, leaving only a note telling him not to look for me. Now I'm the one doing the looking.

I pause outside the building, adjusting my sleeve to ensure I'm not displaying any Akademiya insignia. The structure is nicer than I expected - ornamental pavement, metal filigree on the door handle - clearly catering to wealthier clients. I take a deep breath and step forward, preparing to knock, when the door swings open.

And there he is.

Time has weathered him - his shoulders are thinner, there's a new scar below his ear, and his hair is cropped shorter than he used to wear it. But those red eyes still pierce through me like they did in our student days, and his posture still has that familiar proud tilt of the chin despite the plain clothes and canvas bag slung over his shoulder. He freezes when he sees me, shock momentarily erasing all other expression from his face.

"Alhaitham?" His voice sounds almost exactly as I remember - rich and slightly husky, though there's an edge of something I can't place now. "What are you doing here?"

Before I can respond, he glances past me, then steps outside and closes the door behind him, creating some distance from the building. The scent hits me then - jasmine and citrus with an undercurrent of something sharper, more bitter, that must come from whatever he's been through these past years. It stirs something primal in me, an alpha's recognition of an omega in distress, even through whatever blockers he's wearing.

"Hello to you too, Kaveh," I say, keeping my voice neutral despite the turmoil his unexpected appearance has stirred.

He crosses his arms, stance defensive. "I asked you a question." There's a faint tremor in his hands that he's trying to hide. "Why are you here?"