She hasn’t changed much. Her face was thinner and there were lines around , as if frowning was what she was good at. Her hair was much longer than it has ever been and her previously voluptuous body had become smaller. Her entire aura was different. Truth to be told, Daehyun never expected to see her again.

            “Hi,” Hyosung smiled at him. Her smile was simpler now. It didn’t contain the slyness and deceit that it had. It didn’t even have the complicated love they had for one another, didn’t have the bitter clash of selfish want and pure emotions. It was just old acquaintances with too much between each other suddenly meeting again. She looked tired and, oddly, at peace.

            “Hello.” He was stiff. A quick calculation in his head told him that she was let out earlier than expected, perhaps on good behavior. He felt a tense pinch in his shoulders as he tried to figure out the motive behind her appearance.

            “They let me out early and I figured I would come see you one last time before I leave.”

            “Leave?”

            “Well, I can’t exactly do what I want in Korea anymore, so I figured I’ll start anew somewhere abroad. My uncle’s still in prison and probably will be for a long time. It’ll be a good time for me to get away.”

            He noticed that she didn’t tell him where she was going. It was none of his business. Hyosung opened and hesitated. “I wanted to see how you were doing.”

            “Well,” he responded. “I’m still here and working.”

            “How are things with Jinli?” Daehyun saw the slight tremor on her lips when she said the name. For the first time, there was a new emotion when she stared at him. Hyosung was scared of what he had to say.

            “We are divorced.”

            “Oh.” Her eyes widened. “I didn’t realize.”

            “It’s alright. It happened a few years ago and it’s for the better.” As he spoke, he picked up the stack of papers on his desk and prepared to pack them away in his bag.

            “I’m sorry to hear.”

            “Don’t. There’s nothing to be sorry about.” The conversation was dreadfully suffocating. He wasn’t sure why she was here and bringing up Jinli always made him feel like he was regressing. “It’s getting late. I’m headed out. I can see you out the door.”

            “Yes, sorry. I suppose I should get going.”

            They had an awkward dance shuffle at the door before Daehyun gestured for her to go first. The two of them stood stiffly side by side as they waited for the elevator. The tension filled the air and he scuffled his foot to give him something to think about.    

            “Do you want to get dinner? My flight’s tomorrow and I want to say goodbye.”

            Thank goodness the elevator doors opened and he stepped in. He pressed the button for the lobby and waited until the doors reopened downstairs before he replied. “I don’t think it’s a good idea. I don’t have anything much to say to you anymore.” He held the building door so she could walk through. “I won’t see you out further. Have a good life.”

            Hyosung smiled softly. “Do you still love her?”

            Daehyun stiffened and forced his face to remain a passive composure. “It’s all in the past. Now, if you may,” he bowed and quickly his heel.

***

            Never in a million years did Jinli expect to see Hyosung standing in front of her. The other woman looked fragile, as if the two years she spent in jail had taken a part of her and made her glass. The fingers gripping at her arms were thin and her nails were ripped. “Hi, Jinli.”

            It was surreal. She never could pinpoint how she felt about the older woman. It was true that Daehyun’s continuous feelings for her were what tipped them over into divorce. But was that Hyosung’s fault, or was it Daehyun’s? Or was it just a sad twist of fate that feelings never quite fade as thoroughly as they should, and all three of them were just tragic victims of emotions and bad decisions.

            “Can we get a coffee?”

            Jinli had a million reasons to refuse. But she was curious. And curiosity always killed the cat. So, she said yes.

            “I think there are some things I should probably clarify with you.” Hyosung cupped her latte and took a careful sip.

            “I’m not quite sure there are, but I figured there might as well have some sort of ending.” Jinli smiled a little. “Truth be told, I have thought about you over the years.” Hyosung looked surprised. “I wondered how it would have been for you, being pregnant and in there. But then, I figured that Daehyun would have done something about it.” She ran a finger over the rim of her coffee cup. “I’m sorry. That came across as bitter.”

            Hyosung looked sick. was open slightly and her eyes looked more sunken in. Her hands trembled. “No, I should apologize.”

            “Why? I was the one who came between the two of you. The three of us were just stuck in a terrible cycle.”

            “I lied.” At first her words came out soft. Too soft to be heard over the mellow jazz music. “I was never pregnant. I was just so desperate. I wanted to break you two apart, and I did despicable things.”

            The shock came slowly. Her palms sweated and Jinli found herself gripping the table. The pain she felt all those years before came back as she recalled how defeated she felt when the pregnancy test came in. The disbelief and resignation and disappointment had left a deep scar in her heart. It was a complete dashing of the hope and belief she had for their marriage.

            “I was losing him. I just hoped that once you knew he was with me and we had a baby on the way, you would let him go voluntarily.” Hyosung swallowed and when she looked back up, her eyes were b with tears. “It’s terrible. I have spent every day for the last two years regretting what I did.”

            Jinli shook her head. “No, it doesn’t matter. In the end, he still loved you. I heard him that night. He was pleading with you and told you that he would divorce me after all of the investigations were over. He never belonged to me.” She glanced at her watch and reached for her bag. “It’s getting late and I should head back. Thank you for coming out to meet me. I really do wish you the best.”

            “Wait.” Hyosung grabbed her wrist. “He still loves you. I know he does. If there’s any chance of anything, please don’t let it go. He was lying about the divorce. I know him well enough to know that he just needed me to come down from the ledge. But I could tell. He never was planning on leaving you.”

            It was too much at once. The deep-rooted beliefs that she had held for the last two years were being shaken and pulled at too quickly. Instead, she reacted as she would have before. She looked at Hyosung coldly and yanked her hand away. “If he lied to you then, who knows if he would lie to me now?”

***

            Hyosung’s final words haunted her. They weren’t what she wanted – no, what she needed to hear. They were thoughts she never would have allowed herself to imagine. Jinli tossed and turned, flipping her pillow at least seven times before she decided that she should settle down with taking deep breaths.

            It was over between the two of them. They had no chance, no reason, to even come back together. It was ludicrous that it was Hyosung who had suggested such a thing. Of all people. Jinli laughed bitterly and hit herself on the thigh. “How can you be so stupid and still think about him after all these years?”  

            It didn’t make sense to her. It was true that for a while, she had been gullible enough to think that maybe he could love her. There were moments where it truly seemed like he was taking care of her, doing things for her sake, and almost falling in love with her. But it was a constant yo-yo. He’d give a few treats and then in the next breath, yank it all back. And it was too painful to open that box of memories again.

            And yet. She couldn’t say yes to Taewoon. She couldn’t stop herself from agreeing to help Junhong (and Daehyun) with their new show. She couldn’t bear to not talk to Daehyun at the premier even though she knew she could have gone the whole event avoiding him. All of this was just proof of her foolishness. Has she really learned from all the pain the marriage had put her through? Evidently not. Jinli laughed bitterly and pulled deep into her drawers for the bracelet that Daehyun had gifted her so long ago.

            The delicate chain slithered through her fingers as if telling her to let go of her wistfulness. Memories pulsed through her as she remembered the date that led to him buying this for her, and the pain after. Japan, the rumors, then the scandal with Hyosung. Hyosung. It baffled her that the woman whom she had considered a rival for the first year of her marriage would come now and tell her to be with Daehyun.

            All the lies they spun around each other wrapped around her and she pulled her feet into her body. The bracelet hung precariously off her finger and settled against her palm. She had never thought the pregnancy test was fake. Ever since receiving it, she had been so sure that there was finally something that would come between her and Daehyun, something that no matter how much Daehyun wanted to let go off, he couldn’t. The pregnancy test was really why she had given up. She could have begged him not to divorce her, begged him to stay. But she could never take a father away from an innocent baby. Even through the years, she had wondered what happened to the baby. Jinli shook her head. And all that turned out to be one giant lie.

            Taewoon’s words played in her head. “It makes me so angry to know that even after all this time, all that he’s done to you, you still can’t seem to forget him.” The pendant swung in the air and she followed it until the tears in her eyes blurred everything together. “He still loves you.” Jinli’s other hand reached deep into the drawer for the box that she never opened since she closed it nearly three years ago.

            The ring was nestled in its satin bed. The light of her lamp hit the diamond and sent a scatter of colorful dots across her hand, across her floor. She remembered the day he proposed, eyes filled with anger, mouth filled with lies in front of the media. But then she remembered all the times after, the serenade on their anniversary, the picnics, the talks late at night, the tears, the determination to help her father salvage his company, and most importantly, the look in his eyes when he said he would divorce her. Jinli closed her eyes and thought about the past few months when they would bump into one another at work. She thought about how he made her feel on the night of the premier, and how his gaze always lingered on her a little longer than he should have.

            She took a deep breath and whispered, “And I still love him.”

Thank you for all the continuous support from my readers. 

Clearly, this story is coming to a wrap up, but I anticipate perhaps another five or six (if not more) chapters to round things up and to give the readers what they deserve for having endured this with me for so many years. 

I had so much fun getting to this chapter and I really hope you did too <3 Thank you to everyone who left comments and those who read. Your support means everything to me.