He came home pretty late that night.
I was already curled up in bed.
He stood out on the balcony, talking on the phone.
"Claire, don't cry, okay? Mhm. The application has already been revised... Don't worry. I'll come be with you..."
He spent what felt like forever soothing her.
That warm, gentle tone was so unfamiliar to me.
Ethan left bright and early the next morning.
"Don't forget to confirm the final list."
His eyes darted away from mine, and he didn't stay a second longer.
The application papers were still spread across the table.
His copy was already gone.
Only mine remained.
I gathered all my documents and headed alone to the Westoria branch of the headquarters.
The man who greeted me was in his 60s, with snow-white hair and reading glasses perched on the bridge of his nose.
He flipped through my file before looking up and meeting my eyes.
"You're heading back to your home country?"
"Yes."
"To work in urban public space design?"
"Yes."
He fell silent for a moment.
The corners of his eyes began to redden.
"I've sat by this window for 30 years. I've watched so many young people pass through here, heading off to different countries."
His voice trembled slightly.
"These days, fewer and fewer people like you come through here, people who choose to leave Westoria and go home on their own."
He stamped my paperwork quickly and neatly.
"Welcome home."
My throat tightened, and my eyes began to sting.
When I was little, my Grandma always told me, "Baby girl, no matter how far you go, don't ever forget the way back home."
Grandma had passed away 10 years ago.
Her grave was in the countryside outside Willowmere City.
I hadn't gone back to visit her in 8 years.
This year, I was going back.
I was taking my blueprints and portfolio with me.
And I was going to see her.
When Ethan came home that evening, he was carrying a bag.
"Lydia, I brought you a present."
Inside was a model of the Grand Bellmere Bay Hotel, complete with miniature landmarks carved into its base.
"See? You and Bellmere have such a connection. You almost went on that exchange program there back then. It's such a shame you missed it."
My fingers slowly curled into fists at my sides.
That year, I'd really landed a spot in a year-long design exchange program in Bellmere.
It had been an opportunity I'd dreamed about for years.
My supervisor had told me personally, "This kind of opportunity doesn't come around often. It'll completely change the way you see the field."
I'd been thrilled, already making preparations for my departure.
But 2 weeks before I was supposed to leave, Ethan came down with acute pneumonia and was admitted to the hospital.
It wasn't serious.
He was discharged a week later and made a full recovery after a month of rest.
But while he lay in that hospital bed, he took my hand in his.
"Don't go. Stay here with me, okay?"
I hesitated.
"But this opportunity..."
"There'll be other chances." He cut me off, his tone already edged with irritation. "I'm sick. Shouldn't you stay and take care of me?"
In the end, I gave in and stayed.
And that program spot went straight to Claire.
Looking back now, I realized there was no such thing as that many coincidences in life.
When Claire wanted that exchange spot, Ethan had pulled strings to get it for her.
When she wanted to stay in Bellmere, he'd scrapped his plans to return home.
And now he was standing here, holding out this model to suggest me...
"You can finally go to Bellmere now."
He had no idea this wasn't a gift. It was a knife.
I didn't bother responding.
I simply lowered my head and kept shoving my things into the suitcase.
The trash can beside me was overflowing with things we'd shared: our couple photos, the draft wedding invitations we'd picked out together, the plane tickets we'd booked for our honeymoon...
"You're throwing all this away?"
He sounded genuinely shocked.
It made sense. I used to treasure every single one of those little things as if they were priceless.
Aksara