Taewoon was gone when she woke up. A part of her grasped at the blankets around her and she remembered that he had brought her home and placed her in bed. They stayed up talking and talking until she fell asleep. The knot in her stomach relaxed as she realized that nothing had transpired.

            Jinli slid out of bed and followed the smell in the kitchen. It was all too familiar to her. She stood in the doorway and took a moment to admire his broad back as he flipped the pancakes and plated them before turning around to smile at her. “I figured you would want some breakfast.”

            “It does smell good,” she admitted. When he slid into the chair next to her, it was as if nothing had changed. They were back a few months when they were still happily dating and she felt a dull ache as she thought of how she had given up something beautiful.

            Taewoon looked at her and gave a small smile. “I had a feeling you would like it.” They ate in silence for a while until he spoke again. “I have to leave soon. My flight’s this afternoon.”

            Jinli gave a small smile. “Have a safe flight. Thank you for coming all this way.”

            “It was your accomplishment, and I had a hand in it too.” He placed down his fork and looked her in the eye. “Jinli, I don’t know when is the next time I can come back.”

            She swallowed the lump in . It was for the better. “Take care of yourself and don’t be a stranger. I want to hear about all your accomplishments and if you need another eye, I’m always here to offer an opinion for whatever it’s worth.” It was better to avoid the direction he must have wanted to steer the conversation toward.

            Sure enough there was a disappointed look in his eyes and for a second, he looked like he was about to skip past it but he said, “Jinli, I know you haven’t quite gotten over Daehyun.” He said it matter-of-factly and she wished she could hit pause and bring this conversation to a screeching halt.

            “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 words sound accusatory but Jinli knew that he was not blaming her. “I tried,” he said bitterly. “I tried so hard and it almost seemed like it was working. But then you started on this project, and it just feels like you just can’t seem to get away from the whole lot of them.” Tears were choking his words now and she wanted nothing more than to brush them away. “I wish you never took on that project and I wish I could have been enough.”

            “You’re not the reason why this didn’t work out,” she said. “There are some feelings that can’t just come and go. You were such a balm for me, and I love you. But I can’t deceive you. Maybe if in time, I put him down, then I will come find you.”

            Taewoon tried so hard to smile through his tears and this time she did go to him to wipe them away. He caught her hand and kissed her palm. “Don’t blame me for wanting some distance from you.”

            She swallowed her grief. “I won’t.”

            He pressed another kiss to her forehead and sighed. “I’m going to go now.”

***

            The next few months passed in a blur. Jinli threw herself into her work and scheduled time to see Lili and her two children. She went on solo weekend getaways and built her reputation. Four months later, it was almost as if she was finally able to start anew.

            But fate seemed to have a different say. She woke up that morning to a missed call from Youngjae. It has been several months since she last had any contact with any of Daehyun’s friends and this call surprised her. Nonetheless, it was Youngjae, and if there was any one of them she trusted the most, it would be him.

            “Hey, what’s wrong?”

            Youngjae’s voice was solemn and he sounded slightly choked up as he said, “Daehyun’s father passed away.”

            An image of the smiling elder came into her head and she blinked away her tears as she remembered the way he patted her hand as he wished her blessings. In the last year and a half, she had been unable to see them and despite the divorce, she felt guilt at not being able to live up to the expectations of a good daughter-in-law. She thought of Daehyun’s mother and of the love the two of them had for each other and felt tears drip down to her hand.

            “I thought you might want to attend the funeral. I’ll give you the address. The ceremony is tomorrow.”

            “Thank you, Youngjae.” It was only after she hung up that she thought of Daehyun. He knew that his father had brought him up at his side, grooming him to take over the company, and the two had been exceptionally close. She wanted to text him a comforting message but decided it was probably better to leave him alone.

            Her heart twisted to think of her father-in-law and she cried. Even though their marriage had been a short one, he never failed to make her feel at home when she visited. He had been a pillar of support for her and always had a loud laugh and was the father figure hers could never be.

            At the funeral parlor, lines of people were waiting to say their condolences and goodbyes. She hid her face under a large hat and hoped to slip away unannounced. There was media and the last thing she wanted was for them to see her.

            Daehyun was standing at the side, stoic, only bowing and shaking the hands of people who came up to him to console him. In the course of a night, it seemed as if all the weight in the world had ended up on his shoulders. His mother was kneeling and staring at the photograph of her husband, not bothering to wipe away the tears that streamed silently down her face. Jinli watched from afar and placed her flowers in the ceremonial altar. She knelt down in the back and whispered words of goodbye.

            “I’m sorry I wasn’t able to be with Daehyun and be your daughter-in-law until the end.” She bowed a few times and walked away before she could be tempted to comfort her mother-in-law. She turned at the door and saw that Daehyun’s friends had brought over food and were coaxing the two of them eat. Knowing that he was in good hands, she left.

            Mr. Jung’s death hit her harder than she thought it would. She thought about her own father and about the fragility of human life. Her mind went over all that had happened in the last two years and suddenly, she thought of Hyosung. Since the news of her being sentenced, there has been nothing else. Did she have the baby? There definitely would have been reports of that. Daehyun didn’t seem like someone who would abandon a child. Had she miscarried?

Jinli sighed and shook her head. All those events seem so long ago. Now they were all in very different places and were very different people. She closed her eyes, said her final goodbyes and placed the past behind her.

***

Not long after his father’s passing, the stockholders began to clamor for a new CEO. It was evident that the company has undergone a lot of ups and downs over the last two years and people were eager to start anew. Factions that had been suppressed were now vying for power and while Daehyun’s mother was the interim CEO, they all knew that sooner or later a formal decision would have to be made.

            “The company is going to hold a meeting to see if you can be made CEO,” Yongguk said. “Are you planning on saying anything?”

            Daehyun shrugged. “I don’t want to be made CEO just because I’m my father’s son. I wanted to work for it.”

            “And you have. You’ve done more for this company than most of the old geezers sitting in that room shooting their mouths off. You can’t let the Hwangs take what they want. You should at least vie for the spot.”

            “I’m still only a general manager. If anyone should be considered, it should be you, Hyung.”

            Yongguk sighed. “If I get it, the moment you’re eligible, I’m giving the position back to you. I’m more than happy being CFO instead.”

            Despite his apparent nonchalance, Daehyun knew that it was his final duty to his father to secure the CEO position. It was the spot that he had been training for ever since he could learn to do math. He touched the framed photo of his father on his desk and stood, straightening his tie. “Come. Let’s go have that meeting.”

            The result of the meeting was surprising. Despite the clamor for power, the stockholders, perhaps out of respect for his father, had agreed to give him a probation period. “You have to increase our revenue by at least a third in the next two quarters and sign one more successful artist. Last time the negotiations with Singtertainment fell apart. You must somehow bring about another contract. They are the biggest entertainment company in London and we should have a connection. Your last project idea with the home renovation was a good one. Expand upon that and make sure you can get viewings to go higher. If you can do all of this in the next half year, then we will immediately raise you to Head manager and in the next half year, you will be the CEO. In the meantime, we will have Madame Jung continue to be interim with Mr. Bang acting as her assistant.”

            All those conditions were reasonable, and, if Daehyun pushed hard enough, manageable. He knew the leniency was out of respect for his father and the old board. The contract with Singtertainment was already in the works and the only thing he had to work on was season two of the variety show. This was the problem.

            He knew perfectly well what the public wanted but he wasn’t about to do that to her. Daehyun sighed as he spun on his chair. The pen in his fingers slipped through mid-twirl and as he bent to pick them up, he saw a familiar pair of shoes in front of his desk.

It's been a long time since I've updated and so much has happened since then. I'm the happiest I've been in a long time and it's been hard finding time to write but I will definitely work on finishing this story, and hopefully there will still be others who are willing to read. I hope you all have been well <3