Dear "J" | Sim Jake

Chapter 30

"You're here... I thought you—"

Before she could finish, she was pulled into a sudden embrace.

Warm. Firm. Desperate.

Jake’s arms wrapped around her, holding her as if she would disappear the moment he let go. His heart pounded against his ribs, loud enough that he wondered if she could hear it.

"I'm sorry," he murmured, his voice barely above a whisper. "Jiwon, I'm so sorry."

She stiffened for a moment, caught off guard. The shock of it made her hesitate, but as the seconds passed, she slowly exhaled.

"You forgot, didn't you?" she asked, her voice quiet yet steady.

Jake’s grip on her tightened. He had no excuse, no justification that could make up for it.

"I did," he admitted, the words tasting bitter on his tongue. "I don't know how, but I did… and when I realized—"

He couldn’t even finish. His breath felt unsteady, and regret clawed at his throat.

Jiwon didn’t push him away. She didn’t scold him. She simply stood there, allowing him to hold her, as if giving him a moment to grasp the weight of what he had done.

But that was the thing about expectations—they didn’t always come with anger. Sometimes, disappointment hurt more than rage ever could.

Jiwon stood frozen for a moment, feeling the weight of his words press against her heart. His arms around her were tight, desperate—almost as if he was afraid she would slip away if he let go.

Jake’s voice was strained, his breath warm against her shoulder. "I don’t know how it happened... it was as if it never even existed in my memory. But I swear, Jiwon, I didn’t mean to. You’re important to me—so, so important."

She swallowed, her fingers twitching slightly as if debating whether to return the embrace or push him away. She had waited for hours, telling herself over and over that there must be a reason, that it wasn’t personal, that she shouldn’t feel this hurt. But standing here, hearing the sheer desperation in his voice, feeling the way he clung to her—it made it harder to stay angry.

Her voice was soft when she finally spoke, "Jake..." but she didn’t know what else to say.

Jiwon felt his grip tighten just slightly, like he was bracing himself for an answer he wasn’t ready to hear. His voice was barely above a whisper, rushed, uncertain— "You… you don’t hate me, right?"

She inhaled sharply. Did she? Could she?

Jiwon had spent hours waiting, trying to reason with herself, telling her heart not to expect too much, not to hope too much. And yet, standing here, feeling the way he held onto her like she was something precious—like he was scared to let go—made all those frustrations blur into something else entirely.

She exhaled slowly, closing her eyes for a moment before speaking. "Jake..." her voice was quieter now, more thoughtful. "If I hated you… would I still be standing here?"