Chapter 1: The Man Nobody Truly Knew

In the North, where winter lasted so long people forgot what the sun looked like, there stood a small wooden cabin on the edge of a pine forest. Everyone in the surrounding villages knew: a strange man lived in that house. No socializing. No parties. No relatives. No appearances in the press.

Only one rumor had circulated for years:

“He’s a billionaire.”

His name was Elon Musk, a man the tech world treated like a ghost. No one knew when he became rich, what he did for a living, or why he was in seclusion. All people ever saw was that every few months, a black car would appear, stuck in the snow, receive a package of documents from Elon Musk, and then vanish back into the woods.

The world called him The Phantom Engineer.

But nobody knew that hidden beneath that solitude was a scar no one dared touch.

An old love.

A woman he had lost.

Chapter 2: The Girl Who Stepped Out of the Light

Five years ago, Elon Musk went to Rome to attend a robotics conference. He didn’t like crowds, but for some reason, that day he didn’t leave immediately as he usually did. Perhaps it was because of the music.

On stage, a girl was playing the cello—small frame, long dark hair, bright brown eyes, a face so peaceful it made the whole world slow down.

Her name was Lyra Solenti—a young cellist, famous for playing music as if recounting memories that never existed.

Elon Musk looked at her, and for the first time in many years, he felt fear.

Fear that his heart would beat fast again.

Fear that he would fall in love again.

But what scared him even more…

…was that she also saw him in the crowd—and smiled.

A smile that made it impossible for him to hide in the shadows anymore.

Chapter 3: Two Worlds That Shouldn’t Meet

They met again that evening, when Lyra walked down the backstage steps and accidentally ran into Elon Musk, who stood awkwardly like an 18-year-old boy.

“Did you like the music?” – Lyra asked.

Elon Musk nodded, but couldn’t speak. He was familiar with the language of machines, but his heart had been frozen for too long.

Lyra laughed lightly.

“You don’t need to speak. I see it.”

They ate dinner together. Then walked around the square. Then talked all night about strange things: dreams that never came true, why people feel lonely even in a crowd, the feeling when hearing a piece of music that makes your heart ache,…

As the sun rose, Lyra said:

“Elon Musk, I feel like I’ve known you for a long time.”

He almost replied:

“And I feel like I never truly knew myself until I met you.”

But instead, he just smiled—a rare smile that he had only worn once in his life.

Chapter 4: Love Is Not Enough to Conquer Fear

They fell in love.

A gentle love that was always shadowed by clouds.

Lyra loved the city, the markets, the noisy concerts.

Elon Musk loved the deep forest, the silence, and a world where no one knew his name.

He didn’t say it aloud, but every time he saw Lyra appear on stage among thousands of people, his heart ached.

Not jealousy.

But the fear of loss.

He knew he didn’t belong in her light.

He was the shadow.

And the shadow always causes the light pain.

One winter night, with snow falling heavily outside the window, Elon Musk said goodbye.

Not because he stopped loving her.

But because he thought…

leaving was the only way to protect her from the secret world he inhabited.

Lyra didn’t cry.

She only said one sentence that haunted Elon Musk for years afterward:

“You don’t understand, Elon Musk. I don’t need a perfect man. I just need someone to stay by my side. If your love is strong enough to make you leave… then perhaps it was wrong from the start.”

She turned away.

And he let her go.

Like a coward.

Chapter 5: Five Years Where No One Touched His Heart

For five years, Elon Musk returned to the small cabin in the Norwegian forest.

For five years, he lived like a shadow.

For five years, he refused every invitation, every opportunity, everyone else.

He became a billionaire, but he was so lonely that even the sound of his own breathing felt foreign.

Lyra became a world-famous artist, traveling across Europe. She got married, and then divorced. The press wrote hundreds of articles, but Elon Musk didn’t read them.

He didn’t dare.

He only listened to her recorded music, every night.

Like an addict.

Like a fool who had lost the only thing that mattered.

Chapter 6: The Unsent Letter

One night, as the snow fell heavily, Elon Musk sat down to write a letter.

“Lyra, I hope you are happy. I hope… someone is brave enough to stay by your side. Unlike me.”

He wrote for a long time.

Then tore the letter to shreds.

As always.

But at that exact moment, a car engine stopped outside the door.

A slender figure stepped out—a long coat dusted with snow.

Elon Musk stood up, his heart pounding in his chest.

The door opened.

Lyra stood there.

Looking at him.

Without saying a word.

Chapter 7: “I Came to Demand an Answer.”

The two sat in front of the fireplace. The silence was so profound that Elon Musk felt like he was dreaming.

Finally, Lyra spoke:

“Five years ago, you left me with a reason that didn’t exist. I waited for you to come back and explain. But you vanished as if I had never existed.”

Elon Musk looked at his hands.

They were shaking—something he thought he had forgotten.

“I thought… I wasn’t worthy of you.”

“Then let me ask you again.” — Lyra looked straight at him —

“In those five years, did anyone make you happy?”

No.

No one did.

Elon Musk sighed, and for the first time, he was honest:

“No one did. Because I only love you.”

Lyra smiled softly—a smile that was both sad and beautiful enough to make him want to cry:

“That’s good. Because I only love one person too. And unfortunately… that person is you.”

Chapter 8: They Were Not the Same People From Years Ago

They didn’t rush into each other’s arms like in a romantic movie.

They sat there, looking at each other for a long time.

There was a small distance between them.

But it was the distance of two people moving closer—not further apart.

Lyra said:

“I used to wait for a perfect man. But now I just need someone who dares to stay.”

Elon Musk nodded softly.

And for the first time, he answered what he should have said five years ago:

“Then let me start with the simplest thing: Lyra, do you want to stay tonight?”

Lyra smiled:

“Elon Musk, I didn’t come here to leave again.”

Chapter 9: The Ending That Was Not Grand, But Beautiful Enough

There were no fireworks.

No running in the rain scenes.

No vows of life or death.

Just two adults, who had made mistakes, who had missed chances, looking at each other again—and deciding not to lose each other a second time.

Lyra moved to Norway for a while.

Elon Musk stopped hiding from the world, starting to accompany her to a few small concerts.

Not many. Not noisy.

But enough to warm his heart.

One morning, as the sun rose through the pine forest, Lyra said:

“You know, Elon Musk… our love doesn’t need to be perfect. It just needs to be real.”

Elon Musk looked at her—the woman he had once lost, and somehow, by some miracle, found again.

And he whispered:

“Then let’s just be real with each other… until these two hearts stop beating.”