At Long Last

See you again

The morning had been a whirlwind of frenzied packing, breakfast, checking out of the hotel and rushing to the airport via the hotel's airport transfer service.

Oddly, it wasn't even that painful when they were rushing for time. Somehow, they had even managed to laugh in the car with their friendly driver.

However, with each passing second at the airport, came the emotional magnitude of the upcoming goodbye.

Earlier when she was checking in for her flight at the counter, the lady had waited, presumably for Jeong Hyeok to hand his passport over.

"Are you traveling together?"

"No. I'm flying alone." Was her gut-wrenchingly painful answer.

How she wished they could fly together to a similar destination one day.

It was already 11.45am. With her flight being scheduled for 1pm, Se-ri had to leave.

He would have gladly gone in earlier with her, but alas, his flight was due to depart from a separate terminal.

Standing at the public area of the departure hall, just a small distance away from the departure gates, were Jeong Hyeok and Se-ri.

By this point, everything was too real.

People are walking by in a blur, Se-ri randomly mused. Are they all oblivious to our emotions, or do they share the same feelings?

This was harder, way harder, than the last goodbye at the military demarcation lines.

How could she possibly leave so easily, when the taste of his lips was still lingering on hers?

Back then, the end of the reunion in Seoul was not something she could have exercised any form of control over.

In a way, it had been like the drop of a guillotine - sharp and swift, leaving her with no time to truly react.

This time round, there was no one to pull Jeong Hyeok out of her hands.

There was no mercy killing in this emotional suicide that they were going through.

They were the ones who had to pull the trigger.

They were the ones who had to decide to jump off the edge.

As if Fate was not already tearing her heart out of her chest and trampling it to pieces, it was forcing her to summon the strength within herself, to let go of his hands.

The pain was not so much in the goodbye, but rather, in having to make the conscious choice to do so.

"Ri Jeong Hyeok-ssi. I think it's time."

Oddly, her eyes were dry.

Jeong Hyeok's red-rimmed eyes blinked once, then twice, as he valiantly tried to stop his tears from rolling down his cheeks.

"We still have a few minutes left..." He whispered raggedly, though both derived little comfort from his words.

"I should get going." She quietly said, startling even herself with how calm her voice had presented itself.

The grip on her hands tightened the moment those words pushed their way past her lips.

Jeong Hyeok's white-knuckled hold was almost painful, but the physical discomfort was nothing compared to the devastating hurt in their hearts.

"One minute. Please." His voice was laden with choking heaviness, forcing him to pause several times. "Just one minute."

Nodding, Se-ri's watery eyes closed. Oddly, she still wasn't really crying.