Eric continued to twist the ring in his finger. He let out a heavy sigh, “It’s okay. I’m wearing it out of habit anyway. I forgot it was even on. I mean…”

“So how’s your wife? And your son?” Hyesung asked weakly.

“My son will be five in a few months. His mother… passed away two years ago.” Eric’s voice wavered.

“Oh..”

“It was cancer. She got diagnosed a few months before I left for the US. That’s why… that’s why we got married as quickly as possible”

“I’m so sorry Eric-ah” Hyesung said sincerely. Eric sounded normal in his messages. He never said anything bad was happening. But then again that’s what’s negative about technology, it effectively masks the truth. Hyesung thought Eric was content and happy. He always typed encouraging replies to Eric. After telling him about the birth of Eric’s son, they stopped messaging entirely.

“I’m really sorry… If I had known, I…” What? What would he have done. He couldn’t be at Eric’s side. There was nothing he could have done. Realistically, the best decision was to let Eric go.

Eric gave Hyesung a sad smile, “It’s I who should be sorry. I pulled you into my crazy world. Now, I’m here with all this baggage. I didn’t want to burden you---then and now. But I was too tempted to see you. Even for once. My wife… she knew all about you. In her last months we grew really close. I was able to open up to her.”

“Why? Why would you do that Eric-ah? She must have felt betrayed.” Hyesung began to tear up.

“I also thought she would, but I underestimated her kindness. She said she had know for years that there was someone before our marriage. She was surprised it was a man. But… she said, as long as I was a good father to our son, I should find my happiness after she passed”, the anguish in Eric’s voice crushed Hyesung’s heart. He wanted to hug the man, he would give everything in the world in exchange for Eric’s peace of mind.

“She sounds like an amazing person, Eric-ah. You changed each other’s lives for the better. She gave the best gift of all. You have your son, Eric-ah. You have a reason for living.” Hyesung said earnestly.

Eric took Hyesung’s hand. The warmth felt nice. It had been seven years since Eric held his hand. It felt new and familiar all at the same time. All his doubts and fears seemed to disappear. He found the comfort that he was always searching for. After his wife died, he always felt adrift. He always felt that something was missing. Now he knew, what was missing is right here. It was Hyesung.

Hyesung looked into Eric’s eyes and understood what was unspoken. The love they had for each other was still there. They both tried to invalidate it. For the lon