The rain drummed steadily against the windows of Pete's All-Night Diner as Sarah Matthews huddled in her usual corner booth, nursing a lukewarm cup of coffee. The neon signs outside cast dancing shadows through the rivulets of water streaming down the glass, painting the worn linoleum floors in hues of red and blue.

She hadn't planned on being here at midnight, but her car had other ideas. The breakdown had forced her to seek shelter in the only establishment still open on this desolate stretch of highway. At least the elderly waitress had been kind enough to keep the coffee coming.

The bell above the door chimed, and a man hurried in, his dark hair plastered to his forehead. He shrugged off his soaked jacket, revealing a rumpled business suit underneath. Their eyes met across the nearly empty diner, and something electric passed between them.

"Mind if I join you?" he asked, approaching her booth. "Every other seat seems to be occupied by ghosts tonight."

Sarah smiled despite herself. "Be my guest, though I should warn you I'm not the best company right now."

"I'm Daniel Harrison," he said, sliding into the seat across from her. "And bad company is better than no company on a night like this."

As the hours ticked by, they shared their stories. Daniel was a corporate lawyer who'd missed his flight due to the storm. Sarah confessed she was running away – not from anything dangerous, but from the suffocating expectations of a life that no longer fit.

"Sometimes," Daniel said, absentmindedly stirring his coffee, "the universe has a funny way of putting us exactly where we need to be, even if we don't know it at the time."

Sarah felt her breath catch when their hands brushed as they both reached for the sugar dispenser. The touch lingered longer than necessary, neither wanting to break the connection.

"You know what's strange?" she said softly. "I feel like I've known you forever, even though we just met."

Daniel's eyes crinkled at the corners as he smiled. "Maybe we have known each other, in some other life. Or maybe some things are just meant to be."

As the storm outside began to calm, they exchanged phone numbers, both knowing this chance encounter was too precious to let slip away. When Sarah's car was finally towed to the nearest garage, Daniel insisted on driving her home.

Standing on her porch in the gentle post-storm drizzle, Sarah turned to face him. "Thank you," she whispered, "for making a horrible night into something magical."

Daniel reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Thank you for reminding me that sometimes the best things in life are completely unplanned."

Their first kiss tasted of coffee and possibility, sweet and warm against the cool night air. Above them, the clouds parted, revealing a sky full of stars that had been there all along, just waiting for the perfect moment to shine.

Years later, they would return to Pete's All-Night Diner to celebrate their anniversaries, always sitting in that same corner booth, grateful for the storm that brought them together on that fateful night.