Chapter 10: Second chances

“…Have you been… well?”

It was a reunion. Five years of silence, of deliberate indifference, of refusing to even share my changed phone number.

A reunion with the girl I’d tried so hard to forget. I’d wanted to ask, to talk…

“…”

The woman sitting across from me was so different. Yet, also the same. Still taller than me, with a figure that could kill. Still sporting long hair, though styled more maturely now. She used to favor bright colors, but now she was all in black. Her hair seemed calmer, too.

I missed her. So much.

My first, last, and only best friend.

“…The… It’s been snowing a lot lately… I didn’t think it would snow much this year…”
“…”

Why wouldn’t she answer? I’d asked her to meet, to see her again. I was worried it was about the money, but I needed to see her face, even just once. So I came.

“…It’s a bit dark, isn’t it…? Gloomy atmosphere…”

For ten minutes, she’d just stared at me, expressionless. The awkward silence made me babble. Why wouldn’t she react? Did she hate me that much? Then why agree to meet? This was agonizing.

“…….”

She was different from how I remembered. Or rather, my memories were correct, but… she was… darker. Not just her clothes, but her demeanor, the deep circles under her eyes.

She’d been through a lot. I didn’t need to guess. Her face told the story. What had happened after she left me?

What should I say?

“…”
“…Hyeji…”

The atmosphere grew heavy again. I spoke her name, my voice barely above a whisper.

“…”

My gaze fell to the floor, the weight of past sins settling on my shoulders.

“…I’m sorry.”

I finally spoke, shrinking under the weight of our reunion. It was the only thing I could say.

My success, everything… It felt like my fault.

Maybe I could have handled things differently, been more sensitive. The regret lingered, the shame of my past mistakes still fresh.

“…”

I could blame it on being young and naive, scared and confused. Back then, everything was new, everything was terrifying. I was a mess, practically insane. I was still a mess, but…

I didn’t want to make excuses anymore.

“…Hyeji…”

I took a deep breath, lifted my head, and met her eyes.

“…”

And I saw it.

“…”
“…Ah…”

The slow curve of her lips, turning upwards into a smile.

“…”

Angelic. Her smile was still beautiful, the same smile I’d wanted to cherish since before I changed, since we first met.

The smile I’d longed to see again.

“…”

A childlike, innocent smile. Her face, slowly brightening, told me it was okay to forget my mistakes.

“…You haven’t changed at all.”

And I heard it.

“…Oh… Um… Yeah…”

Her voice. Deeper, calmer, more mature, more alluring.

“…That’s good.”

She touched her face.

“…”

Relieved.

“…I missed you… so much…”
“…Huh…?”

And then she said it.

“…I wanted to apologize… It was my fault…”
“…”

Five years of silence. The reason she’d disappeared without a word.

“…I was wrong… I… I tried to hurt you…”
“…”

I couldn’t answer. She wasn’t wrong. I’d overreacted out of fear.

“…But if I came back… you would have been scared of me… So…”
“…So…”

I understood. She left to protect me. She knew an apology wouldn’t have reached me then.

Her attempted assault had fractured our friendship. And in that broken space, confused between friendship and something more, I’d lashed out. I’d overreacted, and Hyeji, seeing the whole picture, had chosen to leave.

“…I wasn’t just going to disappear forever, though…”
“…”

I understood everything.

“I… I succeeded.”
“Huh…?”

I was overwhelmed with guilt, with a renewed fondness for Hyeji, my emotions warring within me, but…

“I thought… if I became someone you could respect… someone worthy of your friendship again… then maybe… we could go back to how things were…”

Hyeji said,

“…I’m the vice president of a pharmaceutical company. I’ll be president in two years.”
“…What…?”

This crazy woman… Vice president? For five years? Who was she?

This was surreal.

“…I can give you anything now, Semin… Anything…”

I’d spent five years struggling to build my franchise, and she was a vice president? Seriously? A genius rising to vice president in five years? After graduating college and just one year in the workforce? That was insane. Even for a genius, that was too much. Was the universe messing with me?

“I’m sorry… I missed you so much…”
“I-it’s okay… Yeah…”

I took a deep breath, calming my racing heart. No matter how unfair it seemed, Hyeji was born a genius. I had to accept reality and congratulate her.

“Congratulations, Hyeji. You earned it. I’m proud of you…”
“…Thanks…”

I was truly envious.

“…So, Semin… what have you been up to…?”
“Uh… Yeah…?”

Just as I was pretending to be fine, Hyeji hit me where it hurt.

“…Uh… Yeah…”

I scratched the back of my head, avoiding her gaze.

“…I… I opened this cafe…”
“Really?”

I gestured vaguely around us.

“…Wow! Your dream was to start a business! You did it!”
“A-ahaha… Yeah…”

We were sitting in my cafe. My flagship store.

This was embarrassing. I was successful, but compared to a pharmaceutical VP… This was humiliating. I wanted to cry.

“But this place is booming! It’s been all over the news! You really opened this…?”
“…Y-yeah…”

She hadn’t even known. That stung a little.

“That’s amazing, Semin… You’re… you’re incredible.”
“P-please don’t say that…”

I almost burst into tears, deflecting her forced praise.

“I’m serious!”
“Waaaaah…”

A wannabe entrepreneur and a true success story. Worlds apart.

“So… now that we’ve finally met again… want to grab dinner…?”
“Dinner?”

Hyeji smiled.

“I found this amazing restaurant nearby… It’s omakase. The food is incredible.”
“O-omakase…”

That sounded expensive. A bit out of my league.

“Um… Are you… paying…?”
“Of course! My treat. Come on!”

Without missing a beat, Hyeji pulled me up from the sofa.

“…”

Tap

This was strange. When she first walked in, it felt like we were strangers, meeting after five years. But now…

“You got smaller?”
“Wh-what are you talking about…!”

…it felt like old times.

This is what I’d always wanted.

Happiness.

This moment, this feeling… If I could give it a name… it would be happiness. Nostalgia. Closure.

The healing of old wounds, of lingering regrets.

****

Rustle

“…Why?”

In the quiet, empty house, the fox spirit sat alone, stroking her chin.

“…Why did she come back…?”

She had a vague understanding of the present and future. As a guardian spirit, she’d long been able to glimpse fragments of her human’s future. She could manipulate the present to shape the future as she desired, but…

“…”

…this was unexpected.

“…Strange…”

In the future she’d seen, the other girl hurt Semin deeply and then disappeared. Not the incident from five years ago, but something much later, a deeper wound.

That’s why she’d intervened, but this time… things were different. The events had unfolded in a completely unexpected way.

“…So…”

And more importantly…

“…This is odd… “

…the other girl was no longer present in Semin’s future.