139. Africa Does Not Reject HimRoman

The heat meets him before the ground does.

It presses against his skin the moment the aircraft door opens, not aggressive, not cruel, just… present. Honest. Roman pauses at the top of the steps longer than necessary, his hand tightening briefly on the rail. For a second, his chest tightens in that old, familiar way. Muscle memory. Guilt memory. Africa-memory.

But nothing happens.

No collapse.

No panic.

No suffocating wave of ghosts. He exhales slowly and ...