STRAWBERRIES & CIGARETTES

CHAPTER 34

F I V E  Y E A R S  L A T E R . . .

Harae groaned when the bright light hit her eyes the moment she got out of the car.

She immediately secured her bag and then turned to Kyla, who was busy talking to her husband on the phone. When she noticed that she wouldn't get her best friend's attention anytime soon, she only turned to Yangyang, who finished securing the car.

"Where's Seunghan?", Harae asks.

The male shrugged, "I thought you're the one chatting with him."

"He's not answering."

"He's stuck with Johann. My baby girl fell too much with him", Kyla joined as she dropped the call with a sigh. "Seriously, what did he do? She's even claiming him as her boyfriend now."

"Gosh, you were defeated by a three-year-old, Hana Rae. Step up your game!", Yangyang snorted.

Harae only rolled her eyes. "I got through a forced breakup, got married, and then barely denied divorce. Cut me some slack", she said, then walked ahead. "Let's go; I'm dying of hunger."

Time went by even if you're hoping for it to stop. It passes whether you're in a good or bad condition, and your courage to fight through it is the only thing that can help you continue walking in thorns until you finally get to the softer ground.

For Harae, five years is enough of a test for her to know exactly what she wants. To live exactly what she decided with might change her for who she is, but she knows that it's for the better.

It's like five years is worth five different lifetimes. Many times she stumbled, crawled, gave up, stood up again, walked, then fell down the dark hole once again—an unending cycle.

She can recall everything that has happened in those five merciless years, but she can barely remember when the last time she felt something genuine; when she felt something that triggered a bubble of happiness that hadn't been poked at for a very long time.

The dark schemes of her family didn't surprise her anymore, but that drive of strength to conquer it all beat everything. She was proud of herself.

Lots of times she hid in the shadows until a small light suddenly came into her—such a very little voice saying that she still could. And she did, finally. Going out in the world. Facing the wave of this life.

"I want to go to Venice next month", Yangyang randomly said.

"The last time we chose between Switzerland and Venice, you chose Switzerland. That's a chance for you. You lost it", Harae replies.

"You don't want to go to Venice anyway. He was there."

Right. He.

Yier Chen Zhong. Him.

How can she forget?

When they planned to travel and chose between wonderful places, she really considered Venice. But when she accidentally heard Yangyang and Seunghan say that Chenle was in Venice, she chose Switzerland right away.

Coward, she merely thinks of herself that way. She didn't even know how he was doing. She strongly avoids getting updates about him.