When Love Forgets

Chapter 1

              

                    - Mina's POV-

Today is the day.

The day I never imagined would come, but here it is-silent, unspoken, and heavy with the weight of unfulfilled promises.

The wedding is nothing grand, just family and a few business partners, but it feels like the beginning of everything and nothing all at once.

I stand next to my father, my heart pounding in my chest, as we make our way into the room.

The air feels thick, suffocating, as if the world has paused, waiting for the moment my eyes fall on him.

Kim Taehyung.

The boy I grew up with. The boy I once promised to fight for, no matter the odds. The boy who had once been my everything, but now, seems like a stranger.

As I step into the room, I can feel him. I don't need to look to know where he stands. But when I do, I wish I hadn't. His eyes are cold, emotionless, and they meet mine for the first time in two years.

For a brief moment, I forget how to breathe. My body aches to run to him, to throw my arms around him and cry out all the pain I've carried for so long. I want to tell him how much I missed him, how I lived in a world of darkness without him. But I can't. Because he doesn't remember me.

The silence between us stretches, and I realize it's not just him who's changed-it's me too.

He's grown into the man I never thought I'd see. Strong, more handsome than I remember, and even from across the room, I can see the way his presence commands attention. I watch as other women gaze at him with longing, and I know they see what I used to-what I still do, but what he can no longer see.

I want to hate him for forgetting me. For forgetting us. But I can't. Not when he looks at me like I'm nothing more than a stranger standing before him.

Finally, the moment comes. Our vows. "I do."

And just like that, the life we once had is sealed with a simple ring. No kiss. No promises. Just cold, sterile reality. The weight of the ring on my finger feels like a mockery of everything we once were.

After the wedding ceremony, the party felt like a blur of voices and laughter, but nothing could shake the cold knot in my chest.

I stood beside him, an ocean of guests swirling around us, yet it felt like we were the only two people in the room.

He stood there, still distant, still a stranger. I tried to breathe through the aching emptiness, my hands trembling under the weight of the ring that now marked me as his wife.

It was then I felt a gentle hand on my shoulder. I turned to see her-Mrs. Kim, Taehyung's mother. Her smile was warm, but there was a softness in her eyes that carried a heavy sadness, one I knew too well.

"Mina," she said, her voice like a balm to the pain inside me.

She looked at me like she had always known me, like I was a daughter she had watched grow up.

"You've always been like family to us, you know that?"

I nodded, swallowing the lump that had formed in my throat.

She stepped closer, her voice lowering to a comforting whisper.

"Taehyung... he's a good boy, but he's been through so much. He's changed, yes, but that doesn't mean he doesn't care about you. He just doesn't remember."

I wanted to cry. I wanted to fall into her arms and let her comfort me, but I couldn't. Not when everything felt so wrong.

Her hand rested on mine, her eyes searching mine for some sign of understanding.

"This marriage... it's not just about contracts or business deals. It's a second chance, Mina. A chance for you to find your way back to him. And for him to find his way back to you."

I bit my lip, trying to hold back the tears that threatened to spill over. I didn't know if it was hope she was offering or the fragile thread of a dream I had clung to for years.

But hearing those words, feeling her warmth, gave me something I hadn't felt in so long-hope.

For a moment, I allowed myself to believe that maybe, just maybe, love could still find a way between us.

The car ride to our new house was silent, the kind of silence that wraps around you like a suffocating fog.

I tried to distract myself, to fill the empty space between us, but every word I wanted to say felt like it would break something even more fragile than it already was.

As the car pulled into the driveway, I couldn't bring myself to look at him.

My heart was heavy, my thoughts muddled, and all I could focus on was the feeling of the wedding dress clinging to my body-stifling and wrong.

When we stepped out of the car, I forced a smile, hoping to break the tension that hung between us.

"The house is beautiful," I said, my voice barely above a whisper.

But he didn't respond. He didn't even glance at me. Instead, he walked ahead, his steps brisk, as if he was trying to distance himself from the moment.

I followed him inside, my heart sinking further with every step.

Taehyung threw his jacket carelessly on the living room couch, as if he hadn't a care in the world.

Then, without looking back, he walked to the bar, poured himself a drink, and downed it in one go, his face betraying nothing.

I stood there, my wedding dress like a shroud around me, the weight of everything pressing down on my shoulders.

His indifference was like a slap in the face. It was all too much to take in.

Finally, he turned to me, his voice cold and empty.

"Your room is upstairs, next to mine."

And just like that, he walked away.

I stood there, alone, in the middle of the grand house, feeling more distant from him than ever before.

The silence that followed felt like a cruel reminder that, despite everything, nothing had changed.