After my family dragged me back home, my mind would often drift back to that evening.

I had sat sideways on the back of Julian's motorcycle, clutching the jacket he'd handed me. I had watched the wind puff up his faded, white T-shirt.

The heart worked in strange ways when we were young. Someone like Julian had simply never existed in my world before. So, I fell for him effortlessly in this chance encounter.

Julian used to work as a sparring partner at a local boxing gym. Taking advantage of my age and the fact that I was a girl, I pestered him relentlessly to be my local guide. Julian frowned and said that that was inappropriate.

One day, I was at the gym's back exit, waiting for Julian to get off work. Suddenly, a heavy downpour left me soaking from head to toe.

He walked out with an umbrella and chuckled helplessly when he saw me standing there, pouting and utterly miserable.

Over the months that followed, Julian took me through countless alleys on that motorcycle.

He brought me to try the pudding he had been eating since he was a child. We sat on river embankments, watching the ships crawl slowly past.

Once, I insisted on hiking up an unmaintained trail. He grumbled the whole time about what a nuisance I was, yet he gripped my hand firmly as we made our way over the steep slopes. My ears were burning as our hands touched.

Those days and nights together made me naively believe that Julian and I were only a single confession away from forever.

I even planned it out. I would stand on my tiptoes and kiss his tightly pressed lips under a starlit night.

Suddenly, my family's bodyguards appeared before me. I was screaming and sobbing as they forced me into the car.

Behind them, Julian lay pinned to the pavement. His body was covered in wounds from the struggle.

Before they drove me away, he managed to break free and lunge toward the car. His bloodied palm slammed against the glass, and his stubborn eyes were locked onto mine.

I watched his lips move, and his message was unmistakable. "Wait for me."

I couldn't stop crying and nodding inside the car.

After I returned home, I waged a war with my parents. However, I later saw Julian with another woman.

A year passed before I saw him again. I had traveled for days. I was exhausted and disheveled. I took three different buses to reach the new boxing gym he had opened.

My eyes stung before I even saw him. I had so much to tell him. I wanted to ask why he never came for me and to finally confess the feelings I hadn't been able to say aloud back then.

When I pushed the door open, I saw Julian bent over. He was carefully lacing up a pair of boxing gloves for a woman with a ponytail.

The woman, Carrie Wright, giggled and pinched Julian's cheeks playfully. He didn't pull away; instead, he knocked her head affectionately.

"That girl has been living here for a month. Julian is so devoted to her. All the students here have started jokingly calling her 'Mrs. Sutherland,'" a cleaner told me.

I stood frozen. The speech I had rehearsed throughout my entire journey was caught in my throat.

Back when I was the one pestering Julian, his students used to tease us the exact same way.

My face used to flush as I stole glances at Julian. I nudged his shoulders and asked what he thought about that.

He looked at me in exasperation and muttered that the students were just attention-seeking. The more I indulged them, the worse they'd get.

Yet, for all his talk, the next time someone dared to call me "Mrs. Sutherland", he would drag them up into the ring for a sparring session.

Carrie noticed me and asked, "Can I help you, miss?"

Julian turned and saw me. The smile that was still lingering on his face froze as he said stiffly, "Ms. Brown."

It had been a year since we last met. Everything between us felt strange and awkward.

I wanted to ask why he had told me to wait when he never showed up. I wanted to know who Carrie was.

Finally, all that came out was, "Have your injuries recovered?"

Julian looked away and said coldly, "They recovered a long time ago."

The tension was palpable. The clock in the gym ticked steadily.

After a long pause, I asked gently, "I suddenly have a craving for that pudding from the alley."

Julian stiffened. "I'll get some. Wait here," he said instinctively.

A strong sense of familiarity coursed through me as I watched his retreating back. It was as though we were back in those autumn months when he used to indulge my every whim.

"Hey! How do you know Julian?" I didn't know when Carrie approached me, but she seemed annoyed at my lack of response.

Then, she jammed her elbow hard into my waist and hissed, "Hey! What's with that attitude? I'm talking to you!"

I winced in pain and shoved her forcefully.

Just then, the door swung open.

"I forgot my key—" Then, Julian raised his voice and continued, "What the hell are you doing?"

He dashed across the room, shielded Carrie behind his back, and looked at me defensively.

I stared at Julian for a long time.

He began to panic and muttered an apology. Then, he tried to approach me.

"I'm sorry, Serina."

I looked at him. My eyes were burning with tears that I refused to let fall.

"You're a liar, Julian," I hissed.

He told me to wait, but he never came for me. He allowed someone else to take my place without a second thought. I hated him.

I rejected Julian's apologies and blocked his number. On the flight back to Guskor, I went through my phone and deleted every single photo of him.

I threw myself into my studies and social life, desperately trying to crowd out any thought of Julian.

During my second year in Guskor, I was writing a thesis paper late at night when a wave of emotions washed over me.

I logged into my social media account, which I rarely used, and posted, "I have a craving for the rose cake from Emerald Lane."

It was nothing more than a bout of homesickness. I soon forgot I had even posted it.

Two weeks later, after the school's music concert event was over, I ran into a middle-aged man standing near the campus gates.

He let out a sigh of relief when he saw me and asked if I was Serina, the girl who wanted the rose cakes.

I nodded in confusion. The man smiled and handed me a bag.

"Julian asked me to bring these to you. He knew I was heading back to Guskor, so he came to find me.

"After buying the cakes, he asked me to hurry back and get them to you. You youngsters certainly have a way of making love complicated."

I didn't know when he started following my social media account.

My tears fell without warning the moment the rose cake melted in my mouth. I realized then that I had never truly forgotten him.

I booked the earliest flight back home and rushed to request a leave of absence from school.

My friend sent me to the airport. She was unimpressed with the way my eyes were suddenly shining with hope.

Before I boarded the plane, my friend looked at me in frustration. She wanted to record evidence of my lovesick stupidity.

"Serina, that wasn't what you said when you got off the plane. You swore you would never forgive him."

My hand trembled as I gripped my ticket. My face flushed, but I refused to change my mind.

Maybe I really was a lovesick fool. All Julian had to do was beckon, and I would throw everything aside to run back to him.

I was helpless against all the beautiful memories I had of him.

In Guskor, I had learned to drive the fastest sports cars, but I couldn't find anyone willing to ride a motorcycle across the city to buy a box of freshly baked cheesecake.

His silhouette in the twilight wind always haunted my dreams.

I couldn't forget about him. I couldn't let go. So, I chose to chase after him one last time.

"It's different this time," I said, echoing the same line used by every lovesick fool in countless love stories.

My friend was so mad that she was at a loss for words.

The plane began its descent, and my heart was pounding so hard it frightened me.

As I dragged my suitcase to look for Julian, I felt a mix of longing and dread.

When I pushed the door open, I saw him hugging Carrie. She was sobbing against his shoulder, and he was gently stroking her back while whispering words of comfort.

When Julian saw me, he was stunned. As he tried to pull away from Carrie and approach me, she gave his sleeve a soft, subtle tug. Just like that, he went still.

Then, he introduced her. "Serina, this is my girlfriend."

I stood there, dazed. I was still clutching the box of rose cakes—the ones he had asked someone to send to Guskor. "Why did you send me the rose cakes?"

Julian was silent for a few seconds. Then, he tightened his grip on Carrie's hand and said, "We're planning to get married. I figured you probably wouldn't be able to make it back for the wedding, so the rose cakes were our gift in advance."

I became nauseous immediately. Those cakes, which I had savored and mistaken for an act of love, instantly became the most revolting thing on earth. They made my stomach churn.

I said in a trembling voice, "You’re incredible, Julian."

He knew exactly how to stab me where it hurt.

Carrie tugged at his sleeve again and whispered, "Julian, let's go."

Julian stood his ground and looked at me fondly. "Serina, someone of your status shouldn't be coming to a place like this. I won't be inviting you to the wedding."

I gave a bitter laugh and tossed the paper bag into the bin. "Okay. I wish you both a blissful marriage."

As I walked out of the boxing gym, I told myself I would never set foot in this little town again.

I did see Julian one more time after that. It happened when my father was hospitalized following a heart attack.

I took a leave of absence from my studies and flew back home to help my mother and brother run the company.

After a business meal, I found myself clutching a tree outside the hotel as I retched until my vision blurred. My makeup was a mess, and my hair was plastered to my forehead with sweat. I was a complete disaster.

Just as I was wiping the tears from my face, a familiar voice called out, "Serina?"

I stood frozen and didn't turn around. That voice was all too familiar; a sound that had played on repeat throughout my youth. However, I felt utterly humiliated now.

He walked around to face me, dressed in a tailored suit—a far cry from the man on the motorcycle that I remembered.

As his gaze fell upon my disheveled face, his eyes narrowed. He instinctively reached out as if to steady me. "W-What happened to you?"

I pulled away from him and forced a smile. "What a coincidence."

His hand hung suspended in mid-air for a few seconds before he slowly withdrew it. "I'm here on business," he explained.

I asked in surprise, "Business? I thought you said you'd never leave your hometown."

He smiled, and his eyes sparkled. "I didn't have anything worth fighting for back then, but I do now. I want to see how far I can go."

The alcohol was making my head spin, and I couldn't find the words to respond.

He leaned in closer and said hoarsely, "Let me take you home. You're—"

"Julian!" Before he could finish, the sound of high heels echoed behind him. Carrie came running toward us, lifting the hem of her dress.

She clung to his arm and continued, "Mr. Lansley and the others are waiting for us."

I steadied myself and smirked. Then, I gestured to my secretary, who was waiting a short distance away.

"I won't disturb you guys." As I turned to leave, I heard Julian call my name. However, I didn't turn back.

As I walked into the hotel lobby, I pressed a hand against my chest. I felt calm. Emotions were a strange thing; the heart that used to thrash wildly for Julian had finally gone silent.

After that night, time seemed to fly by. My father eventually woke up, and I returned abroad to finish my degree.

Following graduation, I walked down the aisle with the man my family had chosen for me.

For ten years, I lived a good life.

If Julian hadn't stepped forward the moment I got off that plane, introducing himself as the head of our security detail, I didn't think he would have ever crossed my mind again for the rest of my life.

My friend called me just to gloat. She laughed obnoxiously and said, "Well, Ms. Brown. The world now knows you were once a total lovesick fool. How does it feel?"

I gritted my teeth and replied, "When did you leak that video?"

"Hey, don't blame me! You were in such a rush to leave school back then. The university wouldn't grant you a leave of absence, so when you asked for my help after landing, I just submitted that video to the administration as proof. I told them you were chasing after your lover."

I sighed and rubbed my temples. "You've ruined my life."

The line went dead silent for a few seconds. Then, she whispered, "I forgot that you're married now, and that your husband is terrifying. Crap! Is he going to complain to my brother? I have to go, Sera. I'll pray for you!"

I stared at my phone in stunned silence. My heart started racing as I paced the room.