Jimin’s POV

I stood behind the counter of my bakery a couple of weeks later, sulking. Sakura and I hadn’t contacted each other and I had begun to feel desperately lonely. I felt like I had back in college when I had a one-sided crush on Maya. I’d stare at her in the hallways and class and mope whenever she was absent.

I wanted to see Sakura. I knew she didn’t love me, but it didn’t stop me from wishing I could wrap one of her black curls around my finger and cover her face in kisses.

The bell above the bakery door chimed. I lethargically lifted my head to acknowledge the customer with a smile.

“Hi, welcome to…”

The rest of the words died in my mouth as she stood there, brushing stray petals off of her skirt. Her head was bowed, dark hair falling into her face, obscuring her eyes from view.

She looked up with a radiant smile and I closed my mouth with difficulty.

“Hey, Jimin. Long time no see.”

I blinked rapidly as I struggled to grasp the situation. She laughed, a sweet sound that brought memories flooding back to me.

“M-Maya?” I stammered, wondering if the vision in front of me was real.

She giggled again and nodded her head. Her hair was so much shorter than the last time I’d seen her.

“I’ve missed you.” She crossed the room and stood in front of the counter, smiling and smelling like lilacs and cinnamon.

I stared, drinking in the sight of her.

“Your hair’s different.” Maya suddenly reached out and tugged on a lock. “You look good, Jimin. Did you meet a new girl?”

“Yeah.” I whispered.

She cocked her head and frowned. “You don’t love her more than you loved me, right?”

“No.” I was breathless from her sudden appearance. “No, I don’t.”

Maya gave her sweet, tinkling laugh again. Her fingers trailed across my cheek. “Good.”

I swallowed, half-convinced I was dreaming. I’d woken up so many times from dreams just like this, dreams where Maya would burst into my bakery saying she’d made a mistake and still loved me.

A slight pucker appeared in between her eyebrows. “Jimin?”

“Mmm.” I answered, busy trying to memorize her face. I had started to forget what she looked like in person. The worn photographs in our old scrapbooks didn’t do her justice.

“Do you love this new girl?”

I blinked as the image of Sakura popped up into my mind. Fishnet tights and short skirts. Black curls springing wildly every which way, that energetic smile framed by deep dimples. The sweet way she kissed me and her overwhelming love for books.

I straightened up and cleared my throat. “Yeah. Yeah, I do.”

Maya sighed and laid her hands on out on the counter. A sparkle caught my eye and I felt something within me crack as I noticed the wedding ring on her finger.

“That’s a load off of my mind. I always regretted the way I broke up with you.” She met my eyes for a brief moment. “I just wanted to see how you were.”

“I’m fine.” I tried my best to sound convincing, but my voice broke. “I’m doing really well, Maya.”

“Good.” She smiled at me, a trifle sadly. “The bakery looks beautiful. It’s really come together.”

“Yeah, it has.” I struggled to keep the tremor out of my voice. “Congratulations. You married that guy, huh?”

“Yeah.” Maya gently rested her left hand on her stomach, showing off her happiness to me. “We’re having a baby.”

I nodded, ducking my head down so she couldn’t see my face. “Good. Good for you. I’m glad you’re happy.”

Maya lifted my chin and cupped my face. “You’ll be this happy one day, too, Jimin. I know you will.”

I swallowed the lump in my throat. “I wanted to be that happy with you, baby.”

She leaned forward and impulsively kissed my cheek. “I know, Jimin. I really loved you, you know. We just weren’t meant to be.”

I watched her turn and go, disappearing from my life once more.

As soon as she was out of my sight, I went into the kitchen and cried.