Chapter 04

After getting to know Owen, I was aware that he was always busy with work and disliked going out, which was the complete opposite of me. I enjoyed catching up with friends frequently.

On the way back from Sanya, I walked by a shop selling souvenirs in the tourist spot and stepped right in without a second thought.

I chose a pair of couple's ornaments, a bracelet for myself and a wooden ornament for Owen.

The day Owen came to pick me up to take me home, I placed the wooden ornament from the innermost part of my bag onto his car's dashboard and asked him if he liked it and if it looked good.

Holding the steering wheel with one hand, he gave me a slight smile, not saying much.

When the car stopped at our house, he turned off the engine, unbuckled his seatbelt, and without a word, kissed me.

Startled by his sudden passion, I struggled to push him away, but the disparity in our strength meant he easily pulled me into his embrace.

As he kissed me and I began to feel a lack of oxygen, right before my brain succumbed completely to the hormones, I vaguely heard him whispering in my ear.

“Whatever you choose, I like it.”

...

“We're here.”

Unlike the memory, what now rang in my ears was his cold, distant voice.

I slowly unbuckled my seatbelt, and he didn't urge me and quietly waited.

It seemed both of us were waiting for the other to break the deadlock. I closed my eyes and softly called out his name.

“Owen...”

But the next second, a sudden ringtone interrupted us.

“Okay, I'll be right there.”

The courage I had mustered up vanished in an instant, as I clearly saw the call was from his childhood sweetheart, Ruth.

Still, a part of me held on to hope, knowing that if I didn't ask now, we might never again have a reason or a chance to meet.

“Owen, can we go back to how things were?”

He paused as he put down the phone, and in the silence of the car, I saw a smirk form at the corner of his mouth, mocking either me or himself.

“Alison, do you think love is a child's play, to be taken up and let go as you wish?”

“Since we've already broken up, let's be decisive about it.”