Chapter 9
589words
She looked exhausted. She had stayed by my side day and night and clearly had not rested in a long time. Her usually bright eyes were threaded with red veins that stood out starkly.
Even so, the instant she realized I was awake, she grabbed my hand, unable to hide her excitement.
"How do you feel? Does it still hurt? Do you know how long you were unconscious? I was terrified…" She cut herself off and hurried on. "Don't talk yet. Drink some water first."
The sweet water slid down my throat and cleared my head a little. I gently pulled my hand back.
"What happened to Matthew?" I asked calmly. "That stab was vicious. He really wanted me dead. But you two were so close. If you want me to write a letter of forgiveness, I can do that for you."
I never expected her to take my side. The hurt from the past ran too deep, and I still remembered the way she had accused me back then.
I had spoken neutrally, but the words struck a nerve.
She slammed the bowl onto the table with a sharp bang, then sat back down. Her eyes were red and full of grievance.
"So that's who I am to you? Someone who can't tell right from wrong?" she said bitterly. "The police already took him away. That day, he used work as an excuse to lure me away. If I hadn't gone to your company to look for you, I really would have lost you…"
We no longer had a relationship, but when I saw her wipe away her tears, I still reached out and patted her back to comfort her.
That small gesture seemed to give her hope. Her eyes lit up as she looked at me.
"You've forgiven me, haven't you?" she asked eagerly. "What happened back then really was my fault. I suffered so much after you left. The past is over now. Let's live well together from now on, okay?"
The last time we had spoken like this, face to face, was eight years ago.
We were the same people but with different hearts.
God truly was a ruthless editor, turning two people who once knew each other best into strangers.
As I sat across from her, every possible response felt unnecessary. She stared at me, waiting and hoping for the answer she wanted.
I let out a quiet sigh. "I've thought about it a lot over the years. When you didn't believe me at first, I didn't blame you. But you never should have left me to take care of another man. Do you know that I was planning to propose to you that night?"
She froze. Her lips trembled, out of control. She could not believe how close she had once been to happiness, or how thoroughly she had destroyed it with her own hands.
Tears streamed down her face. She forced herself to sit upright, her shoulders shaking as her voice scraped its way out.
"Everyone makes mistakes," she said hoarsely. "Does that mean everything I felt for you over all these years just gets erased?"
I closed my eyes.
"You can't get past some things," I said softly.
Thunder rolled outside the window, echoing the night from years ago.
At last, the words I had buried for so long had been spoken.
