When Last Night Didn't End

Epilogue: The Times We Stopped Trying

Hye-jin massaged the sore spot on her back as she hobbled to the couch. She had been cleaning the house nonstop since the morning. Still gathered in the kitchen counter were the collection of mugs they had built up over the years.

Rin preferred to take his drinks on a single cup until it broke into pieces and she didn't have the energy to keep things in circulation if she's the only one using it. Okaa-san and Kaito weren't mug fans as well. At this point, Hye-jin was left to wonder how in the world they managed to accumulate so many.

She gritted her teeth and hoisted herself up before the couch could claim her completely. Dinner's an hour away and she still needed to cut the vegetables. She sauntered to the kitchen counter and resumed wiping the mugs one by one, trying to remember where they got each one. Her neighbor's birthday party back when she was seven. Her parents' cupboard, from when she first moved out for uni. She just couldn't find it in her to discard the blue and brown mug when she got the apartment with Rin. And now...

She couldn't even use it. It's an old mug so it's bound to fall apart sooner or later. So, it's better to just keep it. For memory's sake.

When she finished putting away all of the mugs in the cabinets beneath the counter, she strode towards the bedroom to get a change of clothes. She's filthy. It would be better to clean up before heading off to cook. That way, she would at least lessen the strain on her hands.

She opened the closet she shared with Rin and pilfered around for her clothes. A black, velvety box caught her eye. What's that? Rin never kept jewelry in the closet. She reached for it and flipped the lid open. Her eyes widened at the sight of a diamond necklace, with the gem cut to be the side of a fingernail.

A hand covered her mouth. What—where did he get this? With what money? How much was it? She looked around for any receipt but, of course, found none. She went back to the box once more. Why was he hiding it in the closet? A quick glance at the calendar on her phone, the reason became apparent.

Ah. Their anniversary. It's this week. Maybe he was looking for the right moment to give it to her? Was this to make up for the game night he missed? Oh, he didn't have to. Still, she couldn't help it. With somewhat a childlike giggle, she whipped out her phone and snapped a picture.

Then, she put it back. Exactly as she found it and where it resided.

A few days later, Hye-jin sat in a cafe with Anette, sipping from her cup and enjoying the cold tang of coffee against her lips. It's been a while since she'd had the time for this brew. "You meant to tell me he hasn't been home since yesterday?" Anette yelled, startling people from at least three tables down. "What do you think he's doing, Jenny?"

Hye-jin shrugged. She didn't really care. She and Rin had agreed to stay out of each other's business when they could afford it. Rin didn't really need to explain himself to her, nor she to him. That's just how they operated. It's not like he was up to something bad.

"Work, probably," she said, to which Anette groaned against her hand.

"You seem quite sure about that," her friend swirled her straw around her icy drink. "What if he's at another woman's house?"

Hye-jin bristled. "He wouldn't do that," she said. "I know him. He couldn't even muster the strength to enter a grocery store. He's not going into some random woman's house."

And it's true. There's no way Rin would do that and the deeper meaning Anette implied with her choice of words. Rin would never cheat on her.

"In fact, he feels guilty about working all the time that he's planning something grand for our anniversary," Hye-jin dug her phone from her tote bag and shoved it into Anette's face as soon as she found the picture. "Look what he's planning to give me."

Anette set her drink down and wiped her hands on a napkin before taking Hye-jin's phone. "Huh, not bad, Nagara-san," she said, saying Rin's surname like she heard it from a TV show somewhere else. "Did you see how much it was?"

Hye-jin knitted her eyebrows. "Why would I do that?"

Anette scoffed, her mouth parting in the apparent revelation. "Who doesn't do that?" she shook her head and took Hye-jin's hand in hers. "Hye-jin-ah," she said, for once referring to her by how her parents did. "When your husband gives you something, you should always know how much it was. That's like the hidden rule in marriage."

Hye-jin extracted her hands from Anette's hold. "How do you know that? Are you married?"

Anette smacked her lips. "So, let's see how much it was," she snatched Hye-jin's phone and was already typing away at the keyboard before Hye-jin could do anything. Within a few seconds of tapping and scrolling, she held up the screen in Hye-jin's face. "See, what did I tell you? You didn't tell me your husband's loaded."

What? Hye-jin squinted at the screen as she took it back from Anette. The same design blinked back at her. The red numbers at the lower right of the picture was...

"No way that's the real price," Hye-jin ended the app and shut her phone down, turning it face down against the table. As if that could burn the sight out of her eyes and memory. Didn't they say that ignorance was bliss? "We don't have that much money and I'd rather Rin spend it on food than this."

Anette rolled her eyes. "You just accept it," she said. "He bought that for you to make you happy. That's how much he loves you."

Hye-jin frowned. "How much money he spends on me doesn't equate to his love," she said. "Where did you get that from?"

Her friend stuck her bottom lip out, taking another sip from her drink. "Well, what are you going to do, then?"

A sigh flitted out of Hye-jin's lips. "As you said, I'm going to accept it," she said. "I just have to wait until he actually gives it to me. Then, maybe I could talk him out of buying another one like it. Our finances couldn't handle it."

Anette didn't say anything for at least a whole minute as Hye-jin's mind ran in circles in her head. On one part, she felt touched Rin had thought of buying her that. On another, she worried about the strain it'd have put on Rin's shoulders. Should she help him pay that?

Would he even let her?

She blew a breath and sipped her drink, draining it until the last drop. There's nothing to do now. Nothing except to wait and see.