{KOREAN-ENGLISH}
Joon So Min stood in front of the building site, watching cranes lift steel beams and men shout instructions across scaffolding. Her future was rising from the ground,her company, her dream.
After years abroad, she had made a name for herself, built wealth, and returned to Korea ready to start again. But even as the wind blew her coat and her eyes squinted at the sunlight, her heart felt strangely unsettled.
Her phone rang. "Mother" was written across the screen.
"So Min, please get some vegetables on your way home," Choi Hura asked casually.
"Alright, Mother."
She ended the call and exhaled softly.
Was he coming for dinner?
Choi Hura had promised she would invite him herself.
Lee Seo Jun.
The thought of seeing him again tonight made her stomach flutter in a way she didn't want to acknowledge.
⸻
Arms full of grocery bags, So Min paid the taxi driver and turned only to freeze at the sight ahead of her.
A sleek black car pulled up.
The door opened.
Out stepped Lee Seo Jun.
Still tall. Still elegant. Still the same, yet somehow larger,his aura sharper, heavier, undeniable. The man she once loved. The man she had once called hers.
Their eyes locked.
For a heartbeat, neither moved.
"So Min!" Hye Sua's voice rang from behind, breaking the moment.
So Min turned quickly, trying to steady her pulse as she saw Hye Sua and Lee Min Jun approaching.
⸻
Dinner was tense. Or at least, for her.
"I missed your cooking," Lee Seo Jun said warmly, smiling at Choi Hura.
"Eat more, dear," Choi Hura beamed, piling more rice onto his plate.
So Min couldn't meet his gaze. She focused on her food, pushing vegetables around while trying to calm her trembling hands.
But she could feel his eyes on her. Again and again.
After dinner, Choi Hura did what only mothers could do,forced the two to take a walk together.
It was quiet. The breeze carried the scent of night blossoms, and their footsteps echoed softly in the empty path.
"So... how have you been?" he asked, voice low.
"I've been well," she replied, keeping her eyes forward. "I heard about your success. Korea's favorite CEO."
"It's nothing," he said softly. "You've done well too. I've seen your work... You've grown."
They walked in silence for a while, a thousand words dancing between them,none spoken aloud.
Then So Min turned.
"I heard you're engaged."
Seo Jun's jaw clenched slightly.
He didn't answer at first.
"Yes," he finally said, eyes dropping away from hers.
She nodded slowly, heart twisting painfully in her chest.
"I'm happy for you."
She smiled. A beautiful, trembling, brittle smile.
Seo Jun looked at her, mouth opening to say something—
"So Min!" Hye Sua called from behind.
So Min held up a hand gently to pause her friend.
She turned to Seo Jun again, slowly opening her palm.
In it sat a diamond ring.
His ring.
The one he had proposed with.
He froze.
Time seemed to slow as she stepped closer, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Here," she said with a bitter smile. "Thank you, Lee Seo Jun."
She lifted his hand and gently placed the ring back into his palm.
Then she turned to leave.
Seo Jun stood frozen, hand closed around the returned ring. His chest felt hollow.
She was no longer his.
And for the first time, he truly felt it.
"Come to my wedding."
His voice came from behind her like thunder in a quiet room.
She stopped. Turned slightly.
"Sure," she said without looking at him. "I'll be there."
He got into his car and drove off without another word.
So Min stood still, watching the red taillights disappear into the distance.
⸻
"So Min... are you okay?" Hye Sua asked gently.
"I'm fine."
So Min smiled, too quickly.
She walked back into the house without another word.
But her silence said it all.
That night, So Min stared at her phone alone. She scrolled through old photos,the day he proposed,
the smiles, the laughter, the love.
Tears streamed silently down her cheeks.
⸻
The next morning, So Min stood in the bathroom, eyes red and swollen. She didn't want anyone to see her this way.
She took a cold spoon she had hidden and gently pressed it to her eyelids, trying to reduce the puffiness. She washed her face, tied her hair up, and forced a smile at her reflection.
At the salon, the hairstylist looked surprised.
"Your hair is so long and beautiful. Would you like to style it?"
So Min stared at her reflection,her long, silky black hair falling over her shoulders.
"No," she said with a small smile. "Cut it short."
The woman blinked. "Are you sure?"
"Yes. It'll grow back."
The scissors hesitated before making the first cut. As strands of her hair fell to the ground, So Min's heart clenched like pieces of herself being shed.
She left the salon with her new short bob brushing her shoulders.
⸻
"So Min..." Choi Hura gasped at the sight of her.
"Cool," Dae commented innocently.
"What happened?!" Choi Hura ran to her, alarmed.
"Nothing, Mother. Just tired of it," So Min said with a practiced smile and walked past them.
Behind her, Hye Sua stared wide-eyed.
"She cut her hair?!" she whispered, shaken.
"Go talk to her!" Choi Hura urged.
With a dramatic sigh, Hye Sua squared her shoulders and marched off like a determined soldier.
⸻
"So Min!" she cried, bursting into her room.
"What did you do to your hair?!" she wailed playfully.
"Nothing," So Min chuckled. "Don't you think it looks great?"
But Hye Sua could see it clearly.
It wasn't about the hair.
It was about everything she was trying to let go.
Everything she was trying not to feel.
And all the pain she couldn't stop carrying.