diff --git a/packages/app/component-tests/composer.spec.ts b/packages/app/component-tests/composer.spec.ts
index 95dde796838..c37bd337d81 100644
--- a/packages/app/component-tests/composer.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/app/component-tests/composer.spec.ts
@@ -500,6 +500,37 @@ story("grows suggestions while preserving visible timeline context", async ({ mo
   await expect(suggestions).toHaveCSS("max-height", "304px")
 })
 
+story("keeps the @ menu and its last results open while the next search is pending", async ({ mount }) => {
+  const component = await mount("opencode-composer-flow--slow-file-search")
+  const input = component.getByRole("textbox", { name: "Prompt", exact: true })
+  const menu = component.locator('[data-component="composer-suggestions"]')
+  const row = (id: string) => menu.locator(`[data-suggestion-id="${id}"]`)
+  const pending = (query: string) => component.getByRole("button", { name: `Return files for ${query}`, exact: true })
+
+  await input.pressSequentially("@r")
+  await pending("r").click()
+  await expect(row("file:r/plan.md")).toBeVisible()
+  await expect(row("agent:review")).toHaveAttribute("data-active", "")
+  const height = (await menu.boundingBox())!.height
+
+  await input.pressSequentially("e")
+  await expect(pending("re")).toBeVisible()
+  await expect(row("file:r/plan.md")).toBeVisible()
+  expect((await menu.boundingBox())!.height).toBe(height)
+
+  await pending("re").click()
+  await expect(row("file:re/plan.md")).toBeVisible()
+  await expect(row("file:r/plan.md")).toHaveCount(0)
+  await expect(row("agent:review")).toHaveAttribute("data-active", "")
+
+  // Only a settled search with nothing to show empties the menu, and it stays open to say so.
+  await input.pressSequentially("z")
+  await expect(pending("rez")).toBeVisible()
+  await expect(row("file:re/plan.md")).toBeVisible()
+  await pending("rez").click()
+  await expect(menu.getByText("No matching items", { exact: true })).toBeVisible()
+})
+
 story("ignores a detached suggestion boundary", async ({ mount }) => {
   const component = await mount("opencode-composer-flow--detached-command-suggestion-boundary")
   await expect(component.locator('[data-component="composer-suggestions"]')).toHaveCSS("max-height", "304px")
diff --git a/packages/app/src/composer/composer.stories.tsx b/packages/app/src/composer/composer.stories.tsx
index ffb89cc6a30..d0428fe9277 100644
--- a/packages/app/src/composer/composer.stories.tsx
+++ b/packages/app/src/composer/composer.stories.tsx
@@ -62,8 +62,13 @@ function ComposerStory(props: {
   manySuggestions?: boolean
   history?: boolean
   manyHistory?: boolean
+  /** File search waits for the story's "Return files" button, like a slow server. */
+  fileSearch?: boolean
   suggestionBoundary?: () => HTMLElement | undefined
 }) {
+  const [fileSearch, setFileSearch] = createStore<{ pending?: string }>({})
+  let returnFiles: (() => void) | undefined
+
   const [draft, setDraft] = createStore<ComposerPersistedState>({
     prompt: props.prompt ?? [{ type: "text", content: "", start: 0, end: 0 }],
     cursor: props.prompt ? promptLength(props.prompt) : 0,
@@ -150,7 +155,15 @@ function ComposerStory(props: {
     store: [draft, setDraft],
     commands: () => commands,
     context: () => context,
-    searchContextFiles: () => [],
+    searchContextFiles: (query, signal) => {
+      if (!props.fileSearch) return []
+
+      return new Promise<ComposerSuggestion[]>((resolve) => {
+        returnFiles = () => resolve(query.includes("z") ? [] : storyFiles(query))
+        setFileSearch("pending", query)
+        signal?.addEventListener("abort", () => setFileSearch("pending", undefined), { once: true })
+      })
+    },
     history: props.history
       ? {
           entries: (mode) =>
@@ -316,6 +329,20 @@ function ComposerStory(props: {
         {story.activity}
       </output>
       <Composer model={model} borderUnderlay suggestionBoundary={props.suggestionBoundary} />
+      <Show when={props.fileSearch}>
+        <button
+          type="button"
+          class="self-start text-12-regular text-text-weak"
+          disabled={!fileSearch.pending}
+          onMouseDown={(event) => event.preventDefault()}
+          onClick={() => {
+            setFileSearch("pending", undefined)
+            returnFiles?.()
+          }}
+        >
+          {fileSearch.pending === undefined ? "No file search pending" : `Return files for ${fileSearch.pending}`}
+        </button>
+      </Show>
     </div>
   )
 }
@@ -324,6 +351,19 @@ const text = (content: string): ComposerPersistedState["prompt"] => [
   { type: "text", content, start: 0, end: content.length },
 ]
 
+const storyFiles = (query: string): ComposerSuggestion[] =>
+  ["plan.md", "notes.md", "capture.ts", "corpus.ts", "cursor.png", "claude.png"].map((name) => {
+    const path = `${query}/${name}`
+
+    return {
+      id: `file:${path}`,
+      kind: "file",
+      label: path,
+      path,
+      mention: { type: "file", path, content: `@${path}`, start: 0, end: 0 },
+    }
+  })
+
 type FlowArgs = {
   prompt?: ComposerPersistedState["prompt"]
   working: boolean
@@ -437,6 +477,8 @@ export const SlashSuggestions = { args: { suggestions: "command" } }
 
 export const ContextSuggestions = { args: { suggestions: "context" } }
 
+export const SlowFileSearch = { render: () => <ComposerStory fileSearch /> }
+
 function ConstrainedCommandSuggestionsStory() {
   let boundary: HTMLDivElement | undefined
 
diff --git a/packages/app/src/composer/editor/interaction.ts b/packages/app/src/composer/editor/interaction.ts
index ca2801525d8..9e416ff40e3 100644
--- a/packages/app/src/composer/editor/interaction.ts
+++ b/packages/app/src/composer/editor/interaction.ts
@@ -161,12 +161,13 @@ export function createComposerEditor(input: {
     )
   }
 
-  const [found, setFound] = createStore<{ query: string; files: ComposerSuggestion[] }>({ query: "", files: [] })
+  const [found, setFound] = createStore<{ files: ComposerSuggestion[] }>({ files: [] })
   let fileQuery: string | undefined
   let fileAbort = new AbortController()
   onCleanup(() => abort(fileAbort))
 
   // Debounced and abortable: each keystroke or close replaces the pending file search instead of queueing behind it.
+  // The last results stay listed until the next ones arrive, so the menu keeps its rows and height while typing.
   const findFiles = (query?: string) => {
     if (query === fileQuery) return
     abort(fileAbort)
@@ -174,14 +175,16 @@ export function createComposerEditor(input: {
     fileQuery = query
     fileAbort = controller
 
-    if (query === undefined) return
+    if (query === undefined || !query.trim() || /\s/.test(query)) {
+      if (found.files.length) setFound("files", [])
 
-    if (!query.trim() || /\s/.test(query)) return
+      return
+    }
 
     const timer = setTimeout(
       () =>
         void Promise.resolve(input.searchContextFiles(query, controller.signal)).then(
-          (files) => !controller.signal.aborted && setFound({ query, files }),
+          (files) => !controller.signal.aborted && setFound("files", files),
           () => undefined,
         ),
       150,
@@ -210,9 +213,7 @@ export function createComposerEditor(input: {
 
       const seen = new Set(recent.map((item) => item.id))
 
-      const files = found.query === query ? found.files : []
-
-      return [...fixed, ...sessions, ...recent, ...files.filter((item) => !seen.has(item.id))]
+      return [...fixed, ...sessions, ...recent, ...found.files.filter((item) => !seen.has(item.id))]
     },
     key: (item) => item.id,
     filterKeys: ["label"],