7
Jake’s mom called the cops and then hired
me as her lawyer to sue Chloe for fraud.
Initially, it was just to scare Chloe.
But by chance, the investigation uncovered
that after Chloe returned to the U.S., she was
involved in human trafficking, selling illegal
goods, and illegally sending money abroad.
Only then did we learn that Chloe had taken
the $800,000–and worked her way into high
society. She married a rich businessman and
went overseas with him.
Later, she’d spent it all and the businessman
wanted a divorce.
<
Deeply in debt, she came back to the States,
mainly to participate in a human trafficking
scam.
Ironically, her parents, who were still in jail,
were the founders of this scam.
As for getting close to Jake, it was simply her
way of trying to find love again.
Thanks to Chloe, the police were able to
capture the entire crime ring. And because of
my part in the case, my reputation as a
lawyer suddenly exploded.
And with that, my practice was soon up and
running.
The next time I saw Jake, he was much
thinner. His once tailored coat now hung
く
He was freshly shaved and had done his hair,
trying to look composed as he stood in front
of me.
“I want to talk to you.”
At the time, I had just finished a divorce case,
it was Jake’s company’s employee.
The man had cheated and the woman had
proof.
In the end, the man didn’t get a penny.
I smiled and agreed, but Jake seemed to
space out when he looked at me. He reached
out a hand. As his finger barely touched the
corner of my mouth, I quickly stepped away.
A hint of disappointment flashed across his
<
eyes, and he laughed as if it was nothing.
We went to our usual coffee shop, sitting on
the second floor by the window.
He looked at me, trying to speak, but he
didn’t know where to begin.
Finally, he said, “When you were giving birth
to Leo, I was on a business trip in France. I
didn’t plan to see her. I just ran into her when
I was leaving a winery with a friend. She was getting harassed, so I helped her and walked
her home.”
“When you called, she was drunk, I didn’t
want you to hear her, so I didn’t answer.”
“On Leo’s first birthday, she threatened to kill
herself. I was afraid of the drama and knew
く
you’d be mad, so I just told you it was a work
issue and went to see her. That picture was
taken while I was texting you.”
“And that post she put online, she just
showed up at my door. I was trying to figure
out how to handle her and didn’t know she
took the picture and posted it with me
blocked.”
“I swear, after we got married, nothing
happened between us. I’m an idiot but I’m not
such a scumbag that I’d sleep with a woman
when my wife, was giving birth.”
He explained everything, and I listened
patiently, “Are you done?”
He lowered his head, then raised it again,
looking into my eyes, hoping to find a single
<
He was out of luck.
I said, “But you still went.”
Did he ever think of me at the hospital,
fighting for my life?
Did he ever think of the embarrassment of me
holding our baby at the birthday party alone?
He did, but he still went.
Jake sighed and said, quietly, “I’ve been
thinking a lot lately.”
“I went through all my childhood memories,
and then I realized that maybe I didn’t love
Chloe. You know, Sunny, she was just like…”
“What I saw in her was just like me from
<
when I was little. Vulnerable, fragile, strong
and pitiful… Do you know how it feels to be
locked in a dark room, waiting, terrified, to
see which kid will get their bones broken and
be sent out into the streets to beg?
“That’s how I felt every night, waiting for day
to break. They said I was pretty and that they
were going to find a good buyer for me. But
soon after they sold me, the couple had
another kid and beat and yelled at me all the
time.”
He looked down, I couldn’t see his expression.
His voice was so calm, I couldn’t hear a hint
of emotion, but I saw his hands trembling
under the sleeves of his coat.
“When I met her in college, I saw myself
<
curled up in the night, wanting to die but too
scared to do it, I thought I loved her, but after
thinking it all the way through, I realized I just
wanted to protect that little kid.”
“If I said that I love you, you probably wouldn’t
believe me.”
He laughed self–deprecatingly, “But it’s such
a cosmic joke. It was only until now that I
realized who I actually liked. Isn’t that
ridiculous?”
“These days, I can’t stop thinking about how
you always shut everyone up at your debate
meets. I can’t stop thinking of how you’d get
ice cream all over me and then pull at my
sleeve, and how you were always full of so
much energy. …and how you would make
faces at me when you were a little kid…‘
33
く
When we left the coffee shop, Jake rubbed
his red eyes and, almost crying, asked,
“Sunny, is there any chance for us?”
I didn’t answer.
Sometimes, fate plays such cruel jokes.
I was the first person he met. But he didn’t
hold on to me. And while I was cheering over
my Power Ranger backpack, I’d already
forgotten who Jake was.
And after all of that, we were not just
separated by time or distance, but by all the
Chloe’s that might appear in those years.
He’d given all his best to Chloe. What was left of the “real” love for me, compared to all
that?
