“Tiffany, meet Ms. Catherine Jung. She’s the kindhearted donator I told you about. She has agreed to give us some, and when I said some, I mean a lot of money for our event.”

Tiffany smiled and offered the taller woman a handshake. “Tiffany Hwang. Thank you for helping us.”

“Catherine Jung. It’s a pleasure to be a part of this human rights movement. Especially from young people.”

“You speak like you’re an old lady or something.” Tiffany chuckled politely.

“I’m older than you, that’s for sure.”

“Uhh, Tiff, can you accompany Ms. Jung? I have to take care of something really quick.”

The president of student council bowed to Catherine then left in hurry.

“He’s really busy. I hope it’s okay with you. Accompanied only by me, I mean.”

“I don’t mind at all.”

-----

“It’s too much.” Tiffany shifted uncomfortably on her seat. She had never eaten in a luxurious restaurant before. Their stiff and professional service was awkward. She was a fresh graduate. Being far from her family made her really strict on spending money.

“What is? You don’t like the wine?”

Before she could answer, Catherine had raised her hand and mentioned the waiter to come to their table.

“No. It’s not that–”

“May I help you, ma’am?”

“I wish to have the best wine from this restaurant. Is this really the best you have?”

“No, Cath, nothing’s wrong with the wine.” Tiffany turned to the waiter. “We’re good here. Thank you.”

Tiffany watched the man went to his previous spot. As she was sure they were alone, Tiffany heaved a sigh.

“This place is too much. The price of the food is ridiculous.”

“You don’t have to worry, Tiffany. I’m paying.”

“No, you can’t do that. I can pay for my own food–”

“You never let me pay. It’s our forth date. What’s wrong with spending some money for my girlfriend?”

“It’s not that…”

“Okay… then what is it?”

“I just graduate from college and I... I can’t do the same, at least now. I can’t take you to a nice restaurant–”

“I never ask you to return the same thing. I’m glad that you give me a shot to get to know you better. You don’t owe me anything.”

Tiffany bit her lower lip. “I honestly prefer eating junk food.”

“We’ll get pizza and that classic burger you love so much next time. You pay.”

That got Tiffany to smile. “Deal.”

-----

Tiffany broke the kiss when she felt Catherine’s hand slipped under her shirt and gently caressed her stomach. She rested her forehead onto Catherine’s then squeezed the older woman’s shoulder, silently apologized that she couldn’t go further.

“I’m sorry. I – I’m not ready. Not yet.”

Catherine eyes were warm and understanding. She softly brushed her lips against Tiffany’s cheek. “It’s okay. I’m sorry I get carried away.”

The two stayed in comfortable silence.

Not long after, Catherine stood up from the couch. “I’ll get some champagne. You want?”

“Cath, I’m so sorry. I–”

“No need, Tiff. I told I’m here to wait. The fact that you accept my wish to move in together is more than enough. You need time, I’ll give you time.”

“How long?”

“As long as you need. No pressure.”

“Why are you doing this?”

“People do stupid, crazy stuff when they’re in love. And I am crazily, blindly, madly in love with you.”

-----

Catherine didn’t immediately say something when Tiffany voiced her opinion regarding their relationship. It was not working – most likely, it never did. She didn’t know what to feel. Whatever feeling was raging inside her, it was not anger. Confusion – yeah, she was confused. It could be probably because of the stress at work, her attention was not only for Tiffany anymore.

Her life was a mess and she barely want to give it a damn.

“I can’t make you stay when you don’t want to. I’m not exactly around that much anyway.” Catherine buried her face in her hands. She took a deep breath and exhaled. “I will always wish for the best for you. We can be friends. Call me sometimes, alright? We can meet up or something in the future.”

“You okay?”

“I shouldn’t have forced you.” She grabbed her blazer then got off of the chair. “Take your time. You don’t have to rush packing your things. You can stay here before you find a place.”

“I’ve found it.”

“Oh? Oh. Okay, good. I – uh… I have to go. Got papers to sign.”

“In the middle of the night?”

“Yeah, in the middle of the night.”

-----

She thought she was over her. Sadly, spending years far apart from Tiffany didn’t exactly do the trick. Occasionally, the lawyer would show up in her dreams. She always shrugged it off, reasoning that Tiffany was probably no longer available so she should give her heart a break from pain.

Her business partner pushed a card towards her. “She’s my lawyer, a really good one. She knows what she’s doing. You can trust your company with her.”

Her eyes lingered at the name on the card. So Tiffany was still working at the same firm.

“She won’t disappoint you.”

She chuckled bitterly inside. “I’m not really sure about that.”

----

It was a mistake. She shouldn’t let her curiosity got the best of her. She shouldn’t have come to Tiffany’s office. She should’ve spared herself from misery. She had had enough of it for a lifetime.

There were two rings on Tiffany’s ring finger. One was an engagement ring and one was her wedding band. She bought a diamond ring for this woman before her long ago. She couldn’t be wrong.

Her heart scattered in pieces.

Tiffany made her crazy. The yearning to be close to her had become stronger than ever. It was wrong. She couldn’t feel this way anymore. She was someone else’s. She didn’t want to be a home wrecker.

“She’s not mine.”