Hospital – Private Consultation Room
The private consultation room was quiet.
Amber stood near the table, her back straight and her arms folded. Her expression was calm, but there was something sharp in her eyes.
Fifteen years.
Fifteen whole years had passed since she had walked out of Jonathan's life. Fifteen years of unanswered questions, misunderstandings, anger, and memories neither of them had managed to forget.
Jonathan stood a few steps away, watching her carefully.
He was the head of the Devis family. A man who could command an entire business empire with a single sentence.
Unfortunately, none of those achievements seemed useful when Amber was standing in front of him.
Amber: "I need to ask you something." 😐
Jonathan raised an eyebrow.
Jonathan: "Hey! That's my line. Don't steal it." 😤
Amber slowly turned her eyes toward him.
Silence.
Jonathan immediately regretted opening his mouth.
Jonathan: "P-please… continue." 😱
Amber sighed.
Amber: "Why are you acting like a child, Jonathan? You're the head of the Devis family. Not your father." 😐
Jonathan's expression changed.
For a moment, he couldn't find anything to say.
Her words reminded him of the man he had become over the past fifteen years.
He remembered the days after she disappeared.
The unanswered calls.
The empty places where she used to sit.
The letters he had written but never sent.
The anger that had slowly turned into regret.
He had spent years convincing himself that he didn't need her. He had built his family, expanded his business, and become someone people respected.
But one person had never been impressed by his title.
And that person was standing right in front of him.
Jonathan lowered his eyes.
Jonathan: "…Say what you want." 😐
Amber took one step toward him.
Jonathan instinctively stepped backward.
Amber noticed.
She took another step.
He stepped back again.
Amber: "Are you planning to run away every time I come closer?"
Jonathan: "I'm not running away."
Amber: "Then why are you moving backward?"
Jonathan: "The floor is… uneven."
Amber glanced at the perfectly smooth hospital floor.
Amber: "Really?"
Jonathan: "Very uneven." 😶
She didn't respond.
Instead, she continued walking toward him.
Jonathan kept retreating until—
THUD!
His legs hit the chair behind him.
He lost his balance and dropped into it.
Jonathan: "Oof!"
He looked up.
Amber was still approaching.
Jonathan's eyes widened slightly.
Jonathan (thinking): I'm the head of the Devis family. I have faced business rivals, dangerous enemies, and family disputes. Why am I frightened of one woman?
Because she's Amber, you idiot.
Amber stopped directly in front of him.
Then she leaned forward, placing both hands on the armrests of his chair.
Jonathan was now completely trapped between her arms.
Her face was only inches away.
Jonathan's breath caught.
Jonathan: 😶
Amber: 😐
For a few seconds, neither spoke.
He could feel her breath. He could see the small details of her face that fifteen years of memories had never allowed him to forget.
She was older now, just as he was.
Fifteen years had changed them both.
But somehow, standing this close to her made him feel like the young man who had once fallen hopelessly in love with her.
Amber narrowed her eyes.
Amber: "Jonathan…"
Jonathan swallowed.
Jonathan: "Y-yes?"
Amber: "Answer me honestly."
Jonathan nodded nervously.
Amber leaned closer. Their noses almost brushed.
Her voice became softer, but the question carried fifteen years of pain.
Amber: "Why… did you let me leave?"
Jonathan stopped breathing for a moment.
That question.
Not why didn't you call me?
Not why didn't you search for me?
But why did you let her leave?
His fingers tightened around the chair.
Jonathan looked into her eyes, searching for anger, hatred, or even a little sadness.
He found something else.
A question she had carried for fifteen years.
Jonathan: "Amber…"
Amber: "Don't say my name. Answer me."
He opened his mouth, but no words came.
For fifteen years, he had imagined what he would say if he ever met her again.
Now that she was finally in front of him, every prepared answer had disappeared.
And Amber wasn't going to let him escape with silence this time.
TO BE CONTINUED…