Chapter 13 — The End-of-Day Train

A few days after the meeting, Thien An texted Khanh Chi that he had prepared what needed to be presented, inviting her to Chuong Y Van's coffee shop after work to discuss. When Khanh Chi arrived, she saw him already sitting at the familiar corner table, in front of him was an open laptop and a few printed sketches, neatly arranged on the table.

"I have some initial ideas," he said when he saw her sit down, his voice filled with rare enthusiasm. "But before we talk about that, I think it's time for me to tell you my story — at least the work-related part, so you understand why I care about this so much."

Khanh Chi nodded, placed her hands on the table, ready to listen. Outside, the sky was completely dark, yellow streetlights shone through the coffee shop window, and Truong Y Van, understanding her best friend's need for a private space, quietly turned down the music, retreated to the bar, only occasionally glancing out with undisguised eyes of concern.

"I worked for six years at a large architectural firm in Thanh Chau, specializing in designing public buildings — train stations, bus stations, shopping centers," Thien An began, his voice slow, as if trying to rearrange each piece of memory. "Nearly a year ago, I was the architect in charge of designing the dome for the waiting room of a large transit bus station on the outskirts of the city. The project was approved urgently because of schedule pressure from the investor, the construction time was significantly shortened compared to the original plan."

He paused, took a deep breath before continuing. "Three months after the project was put into use, a heavy rain and strong winds caused part of the dome to collapse. Luckily no one was seriously injured, only a few people suffered minor scratches. But the incident immediately became a hot topic in the press and on social networks. People needed someone to blame, and because I was the architect in charge of the design, I became the first target."

"But that error wasn't your design?" Khanh Chi asked, although she had partly guessed the answer through his tone.

"No," Thien An replied, her voice a bit bitter. "After the authorities investigated, the conclusion showed that the main cause was because the construction unit had reduced the number of load-bearing steel trusses compared to the original design drawings to save costs and compensate for the shortened construction time. But at the time the incident first occurred, before the official conclusion, my company hastily issued a press release, implicitly blaming the design stage to protect the relationship with the construction unit - a major partner of the company. in many other projects."

Khanh Chi clearly felt the warmth and resentment still intact in his voice, even though more than a year had passed. "What then?"

"I was suspended from work while waiting for the investigation, even though in my heart I knew I was not wrong. Social networks had already condemned me before the official conclusion, my name was shouted everywhere with harsh criticism. By the time the official investigation conclusion was announced, confirming the fault of the construction unit, the incident had passed its noisy peak, and not many people were interested in correcting my reputation anymore. The company invited me back to work, but I refuse."

"Why did you refuse?" Khanh Chi asked softly.

Thien An was silent for a moment, her eyes looking far away out the glass window of the coffee shop, where the streetlights reflected the light drops of rain that had just begun to fall. "Because I realized, from the beginning, that company was willing to sacrifice an individual to protect the interests of the group, protect business relationships, instead of standing up for the truth. I can no longer continue to work in an environment like that." He turned the coffee cup in his hand, watching the steam rise and disappear. "There were nights when I couldn't sleep, thinking over and over again, if only I had spoken up sooner, if only I hadn't silently endured the criticism during the first few weeks, maybe things would have been different. But at that time I was so confused, so scared of the wave of public opinion, that I no longer trusted my own judgment."

"I understand that feeling," Khanh Chi said softly. "Sometimes being silent is not because you are wrong, but because you are not brave enough to face judgmental eyes."

Thien An nodded, it seemed like what she said touched exactly what he was feeling. "That's right. But more importantly," he continued, his voice low, "that incident made me think a lot about something else, something that has haunted me since I was a child."

Khanh Chi held her breath, feeling that this could be the moment he was about to reveal the biggest secret she had been waiting for weeks.

"I think about how it's easy to blame an individual, to avoid having to face deeper, systemic mistakes," he continued, his voice growing heavier. "And I wonder if the same thing happened to... to someone else, under different circumstances, many years ago."

"Are you talking about the accident at Vong Pass?" Khanh Chi asked directly, no longer patient to beat around the bush anymore.

Thien An looked at her, his eyes contained a deep pain that Khanh Chi had never seen so clearly. "That's right. But Ms. Chi, I beg you, please give me a little more time. I need to be sure about all the details before speaking out, because this matter not only concerns me, but also directly concerns you, your father. I don't want to hurt you with information that has not been fully verified."

Khanh Chi looked at him, both eager to know the truth and touched by his caution and respect for her feelings. She nodded, even though she knew that each day that passed in this wait made her more restless.

"Okay. But promise me, when you're ready, you'll tell me everything, without hiding anything."

"I promise," Thien An replied, holding her hand across the table, his eyes filled with unquestionable sincerity. "And I also promise, no matter what the truth is, I will always be here, facing it with you."

They sat quietly for a while, the atmosphere in the small cafe became unusually quiet, with only the sound of rain falling outside and light music coming from the old speaker behind the counter. Khanh Chi looked at Thien An's hand holding hers, feeling the warmth passing through her skin, and in that moment, even though there were still so many unanswered questions in her heart, she suddenly realized that she completely trusted this man, no matter how cruel the truth ahead was.

After a while, Thien An regained his composure, turned to the sketches on the table, and changed the topic to the plan to save the railway as originally promised. He pointed to a sketch of the floor plan of Van Phong station, his voice gradually returning to the familiar confidence of an architect presenting an idea. "I'm thinking of proposing to keep the route intact but change the operating model, combining serving people's livelihood with slow tourism development - a type that is being successfully applied in many places around the world with old railways similar to this. But to convince the Department of Transport, we need a complete set of documents, data, and a feasible financial plan, not just emotions."

Khanh Chi listened, nodding along with each idea he presented, even though her mind was still filled with echoes of the story she had just heard. She realized that, amid the dry technical drawings and estimates, Thien An was trying to turn his own pain — both from professional events and from untold family secrets — into something useful, a way to atone for what he felt he had failed to do in the past.

"Thank you, for trusting me to tell me," she said, as they prepared to leave. "And thank you, for not giving up, despite experiencing such unfair things."

"It's you who inspires me not to give up," Thien An replied, smiling slightly. "Looking at the way you stood up and spoke in front of the whole hall the other day, I realized that there are times when silence is no longer an option."

But Khanh Chi knows, tonight's conversation has deepened an important milestone in their relationship - not only a growing affection, but also a bond built on a foundation of trust, even though the biggest secret is still there, waiting for the right time to be fully exposed.