One Last Request

"Oh, stop! You're all so awful! Stop teasing me! I can't take that kind of teasing!" Kat spoke in a sweet yet bright voice and lightly jabbed Jason's arm.

She usually acted like one of the male friends, so this was nothing like her usual "female bro" act, especially with how she was so sweet today. She raised her wrist and showed off the delicate Cartier bracelet on it. "Look. It matches Jason's. Pretty, right?"

The moment everyone saw it, they gathered around her and started flattering her. "We've heard that the director has both a great career and a sweet, beautiful wife at home. We're so envious."

"You have to come to the next retreat. The whole trip would be a lot more enjoyable if there were a wife so beautiful around."

Jason stood to the side listening, then gingerly scolded them. "You people really don't know when to stop."

But oddly enough, he did not explain his relationship with Kat at all. Just when things were getting heated, I arrived. It was not a good moment for me to appear.

The mood instantly turned awkward.

Someone finally broke the silence and asked in confusion, "Wasn't this supposed to be a guys' gathering? Why is there suddenly a woman here? Who brought her?"

Everyone looked at each other, clearly unsure.

Jason frowned at me, a hint of impatience in his voice. "Why are you here? Did you really have to show up now? Just two days ago, I was saying you'd finally learned..."

I cut him off immediately and said, "You're the one who told me to come. The day before yesterday, you said it yourself. You wanted me to come today."

After hearing that, Jason went quiet for a moment, as though he had suddenly remembered. Then he said casually, "Oh... I've been so busy these past few days that I forgot. How about next month... No, maybe after New Year's. I'll take you north then. The scenery there is truly impressive. How does that sound?"

I knowingly smiled and went along with it after I heard what he had to say. It did not matter anyway. I would be gone soon, so what difference was there between next month and next year?

Then I turned to answer the man from earlier and said, "I'm your director, Mr. Smith's cousin. I haven't been in Oceanton very long, so I thought I would come hang out for a bit and get to know everyone."

He nodded. "You're his cousin? Welcome, welcome!"

Since this was supposedly a gathering for the boys, it really was not appropriate for a "cousin" like me to stay.

So, I smiled and said to everyone, "Since this is a guys' gathering, I'll head out so I won't interrupt you. We'll have a gathering next time if there's a chance. I'll make sure to get to know everyone properly then."

I said it politely and naturally. Jason did not ask me to stay after hearing what I had to say and simply nodded. Meanwhile, Kat looked at me from the side, something unreadable in her eyes.

"Nice bracelet." That was the last thing I said before I left.

I went home after leaving that gathering. I then took a long, satisfying shower before falling into bed, quickly drifting off into a deep sleep.

I slept for a very long time, so long that I nearly lost all sense of time.

Then, a sudden burst of noise woke me from my dreams.

I opened my eyes, still half asleep. Before I could make sense of anything, someone who reeked of perfume buried his face in my neck.

I was wide awake in an instant, sick with disgust. I jerked and shoved the person hugging me away. When I looked closer, I saw it was Jason.

Seeing me recoil from his touch, Jason gave me a helpless look and quickly began explaining. "Kat has had terrible luck lately. First, she got hurt, then she had to move, so we decided to help her get rid of the bad luck by getting her a new home.

"She's easily embarrassed, and she was too embarrassed to explain anything when they misunderstood her. Our honeymoon was rushed when we got married, so nobody there knew you. It would've been awkward for me to explain, too. If people started gossiping, it would make you look petty."

As I listened to him explain himself, I thought I had already been more than gracious enough back there.

When Jason saw that I said nothing, he took it as a sign that I was over the whole thing and leaned in to hug me again.

I avoided him expressionlessly and said blandly, "I'm tired. Get some rest."

Then I turned away and ignored him.

-

The next day, Jason left for the three-week retreat. And of course, Kat naturally went with him.

Life went on, calm on the surface but with some pressure underneath. I tried not to dwell on the things that troubled me and simply got through each day step by step.

Jason finally came back three days before the end of the month.

When he walked through the door and saw me sitting in the rocking chair, reading under the rays of sunlight with a relaxed expression, he seemed somewhat dazed for a moment.

Then, he came over with a smile, "You're so relaxed this time. You didn't throw any tantrums at all. Don't you miss me?"

In the five years we had been together, Jason had rarely said anything that intimate. Maybe this had long since become his way of making up for things after doing something he felt guilty about. He went on about everything he had seen on this trip, about how people really should get out more and see the world.

I played along and said, "You're right. People should get out more."

He seemed to hear how nonchalant I sounded. After a pause, he asked if I wanted to go out for dinner the day after tomorrow and make up for our anniversary.

I smiled brightly at him. I had sat by that cake and waited for him all night on our anniversary. What was the point of making it up now when he finally remembered it?

I said calmly, "If I remember correctly, Kat has a competition on that day itself, doesn't she? Aren't you going to cheer for her?"

That one sentence seemed to snap Jason awake. He froze, then hurried back out, probably to keep Kat company while she trained.

…But none of that had anything to do with me anymore.

I had already made up my mind. I sold all the designer bags and jewelry and turned them into cash, savings that I could use to start over. I would leave this place that broke my heart and begin a new life somewhere else.

An hour before I left for the train station, my lawyer handed me the divorce certificate and said, "Congratulations on your divorce, Ms. Hershey."

It was a trendy way to put it. I smiled faintly and took the certificate.

The love from those past few years had been like a dream. Now that I was awake, it was time to move on.

I raised my hand to hail a cab. Just then, a familiar hand entered my line of sight.