- Chin up, hand hanging loosely on your husband's arm, you step confidently into the restaurant.
- Every head in the restaurant immediately turns to you.
- The low murmurs are all words of admiration, you're sure of that.
- You & Jimin are the 'it' couple in town, so many magazines & polls have deemed both of you as the most perfect power couple in the entertainment industry.
- He, a successful idol-turned singer, & you, an ex-lawyer who's got both beauty & brain.
- When the news of your wedding hit the news, everyone went crazy & nothing but positive comments were posted online.
- But all of that is just a facade.
- Your seemingly happy & perfect marriage is in fact nothing but an empty shell devoid of love.
- At least, from Jimin's side.
- "Babe, what would you like to order?" He asks from across the table as he scans the menu.
- "Uhm.. Maybe a Caesar salad with grilled chicken? I feel like I need to lose some weight." You cast the bait.
- His eyes instantly shoot up as he puts down the menu & takes your hand in his.
- "You don't need to lose weight. You're perfect as you are." He takes the bait & squeezes your hand.
- You can see the waitress staring at both of you in adoration from the corner of your eyes.
- You're pretty sure after this she'll run to the back & tell her friends about how sweet Jimin is.
- Once the waitress is gone, Jimin abruptly releases your hand & picks up his phone.
- His eyes are glued to the screen, only humming & nodding indifferently to anything you say once every few minutes so that he won't seem that disinterested in his wife.
- That's how he is behind closed door. Cold & inattentive.
- Sometimes you wonder why you bother to keep up with his behavior, but deep down you already know why.
- Stupidly, you're still in love with him & waiting for the warm & loving Jimin you first met to come back.
- "Sorry for the long wait. Here are your orders."
- Her sing-song voice makes you look up, it's a different waitress than before.
- And she's staring intently at your husband.
- "Thank- you." His eyes light up when he sees her, seemingly delighted with what he finds.
- "Enjoy your meal madam. Sir." Her hand lingers a few seconds longer as she places the plate in front of Jimin.
- It doesn't escape you that his eyes follow her until she disappears behind the wall.
- Your heart clenches at the sight, but you're used to it by now.
- "What are you looking at?" You ask flatly as you put a forkful of vegetables into your mouth.
- Bile rises in your throat, making the food taste bitter, but you pretend to be calm & keep chewing.
- "Nothing." He replies without looking at you.
- "Excuse me, I need to go to the restroom." You can't hold in the nausea anymore & leave the table.
- You walk briskly to the bathroom & check your reflection in the mirror.
- A sigh escapes your lips as you notice a few fine lines begin to appear on your complexion.
- I'm getting old. Is that why he doesn't love me anymore? Is that why he prefers to spend the nights with other younger women? I need to schedule an appointment with the dermatologist tomorrow.
- You fix your make up, although there's nothing that needs fixing, fake a smile on your lips, straighten your back & steps out of the restroom.
- I need to stay positive. He'll realize that I'm the only one for him one day.
- But your pretend confidence crumbles to non-existence when you see what Jimin is doing at your table.
- That waitress is standing within his personal space, her one hand is in his & he's gently caressing it with his thumb.
- You freeze in the spot as anger, humiliation, & jealousy wash over you.
- You glance around & luckily no one is paying attention.
- You walk briskly to the table & clear your throat loudly to announce your arrival.
- He abruptly releases her hand & turns to you with a smile.
- "Hey babe, what took you so long?" He asks as if nothing happened.
- "There was a line in the restroom." You lie & flash your huge diamond wedding ring at the waitress on purpose.
- "If there's nothing else, please excuse me." The waitress nods at you & begins to step away.
- "Wait." You call out to her.
- "Do you need anything else babe?" You can detect the underlying unease in his voice.
- "Miss.. Kim Minji. I don't mean to be rude, but that hair color looks a bit tacky on you. Someone as young as you shouldn't try to steal someone else's style, you need to find your own style so that it'll suit you better." You smile sarcastically at her.
- "Y-Yes ma'am. Thank you for your advice." She instantly scurries away.
- "What the hell was that?" Jimin whispers angrily.
- "Nothing. Just finish your dinner."
- The ride back home is silent. The atmosphere is thick & heavy between the two of you.
- "What the fuck was that about?" Jimin yells as soon as you step in through the door of your house.
- "Did you think that I didn't see what you were doing with that whore?! I know you've been sleeping around, but how dare you flirt with someone in my presence?! That was definitely a new low even for you!" You shout back.
- "I wasn't flirting with her! She came to the table because I asked her to refill the wine." He denies.
- "Yeah right." You scoff.
- "Do you have proof? You don't, do you? I'm so fucking sick of you accusing me of doing things that I never do. Maybe it's you who have a problem. Maybe it's your own insecurity that makes you think that way. God, I'm so sick of this." He turns back around & storms out, slamming the door behind him.
- Was I mistaken? Is my own insecurity causing me to continuously doubt him when in fact he does nothing wrong? That's impossible. I saw it clearly with my two eyes. But I was a fair distance away from them. Maybe I'm indeed delusional.
- Those thoughts keep swirling inside your head until you believe that you're the one in the wrong.
- So when Jimin comes back at dawn & plops down on the bed beside you, you've completely forgiven him.
- You decide to cook his favorite breakfast of bacon & eggs to make up for your mistake.
- You're cracking the eggs in the kitchen when your phone buzzes.
- It's a text from an unknown number.
- Usually, you would instantly delete such message but this time you have an uneasy feeling about it so you open the text.
- Your jaw drops as you see the photos in the message.
- A dozen photos of Jimin & that waitress from last night fill your screen & the sentence at the end shoots a huge bullet to your heart.
- "I may look tacky according to your opinion, but he still chooses me over you."
- Your knees give out & you collapse down to the floor with tears streaming down your face.
- How could he do this to me? Making me blame myself & think that I'm delusional.
- After you're done crying, you get off the floor & walk back to your bedroom.
- Jimin is still snoring lightly under the blanket.
- You take off your wedding ring & throw it with all your might to his face.
- "Ow! What the fuck?!" He yelps in pain & abruptly sits up.
- "Thirty minutes. That's all you have. Pack up your things & leave." You say coldly.
- "What? What are you talking about? Why are you taking your ring off?" He picks up your wedding ring in confusion.
- "I'm done with your cheating ass, with your indifferent attitude. I deserve so much better than a jerk like you. You better be gone when I come back." You take off your apron & throw it onto the floor.
- "Wait! Y/n ah, I don't understand what you're talking about." He catches your arm & stops you.
- A whiff of cheap perfume fills your nostrils & angers you even more.
- "Don't touch me, you filthy bastard. Twenty nine minutes. You better hurry before I throw everything out." You shake off his grip & storm out the door.
- You get into your car & drive around aimlessly, continuously sobbing all the way.
- When you come home half an hour later, he's gone. - His side of the closet is empty except for a few things here & there.
- Your wedding ring is gone too.
- Cheap bastard.
- You throw yourself onto the couch & cry again.
- Be strong Y/n ah. You deserve so much better than that. This is for the best.

- A month has passed since the news of your sudden divorce took the media by storm.
- Your lawyer took care of everything so you haven't seen Jimin again after that day he left.
- You're still drowning in misery though.
- Sometimes, you applaud yourself for making the right decision, but more often, you regret not turning a blind eye over his mistake.
- Today, you wake up feeling dizzy from the bottles of red wine you drank the night before.
- Your breath stinks & your mouth tastes bitter, so you stagger to the bathroom to brush your teeth.
- You catch your reflection on the mirror as you pick up your toothbrush & it shocks you.
- Your skin is as pale as the white tiles around you, significant frown lines have formed in between your brows & around your eyes.
- God, I look awful.
- Right then, your phone rings & you walk lazily back to the bedroom to retrieve it. It's your best friend Sunmi.
- "Hello?"
- "Y/n ah, have you seen the news?" She asks urgently.
- "What news?" You reply disinterestedly.
- "Jimin is involved in a huge scandal. You know, that waitress he cheated with? The one who sent you those scandalous photos? Well, somehow the media got ahold of those pictures & they're all over the news now. They're saying that she was the reason for your divorce, which is true of course, but Jimin's company is denying it all."
- "Isn't that kind of expected from a bastard like him?" You scoff.
- "Do you want to take this opportunity & set up a press conference to tell your side of the story? I can help you do that." She offers.
- You think about her tempting proposal for a few seconds & make up your mind.
- "Nah, I don't want to stoop that low. Just let it be. Anw, I gotta go now. I'll talk to you again later."
- You stare blankly at the sink, memories from that night flashes in your mind.
- Then, the phone ring again.
- "I told you, I don't want to-"
- "It was you, wasn't it?! You leaked the pictures to the media for revenge just when my new album is about to hit the market!" Jimin yells from the other end of the line.
- "What?! I didn't even know about it until Sunmi called me this morning! How can you blame me for that?! Maybe that whore did it!" You scream back.
- "There's no way that she would do that to me. She loves me!"
- She loves me. Such simple words but they hurt so deep.
- "Fuck you Park Jimin! Marrying you was the stupidest mistake I've ever made in my life." You spit into the phone & end the call.
- You heave a deep sigh & wipe away the tears from your eyes.
- You promise yourself that it will be the last time you cry for him.

A year later
- You're back working as a lawyer in your old law firm which was more than happy to welcome you back.
- You've dated a couple of guys, but you're definitely not ready for anything serious yet.
- All in all, your life is going on pretty smoothly.
- As for Jimin, not so much.
- The scandal with that waitress basically ruined his career.
- You remained silent throughout the whole ordeal & the public actually applauded you for not partaking in the mess.
- Tonight, you're going on a date with a guy you met through work.
- He's a very sweet guy & you really like him.
- You step into the restaurant & he's already sitting at the table waiting for you.
- "Sorry, I'm late Hoseok ssi. Have you waited long?"
- "No, I've just arrived as well. Ah, this is for you. I know it's a bit old-fashioned but I hope you like flowers." He smiles as he hands you a bouquet of stargazers.
- "Omg, thank you. How do you know that this is my favorite flower?" You're genuinely surprised by his thoughtfulness & it gives you that warm fuzzy feeling in the pit of your stomach.
- "Well, I did my research. Shall we?" He pulls the chair out for you to sit down.
- The dinner goes on marvelously as you truly enjoy spending time with him.
- Suddenly, a loud commotion on the opposite side of the restaurant distracts your attention.
- "What's going on over there?" You turn to the noise out of curiosity.
- "I'm not sure. Probably some drunk guest making a scene." Hoseok says.
- Both of you focus back on the food in front of you, but then you feel someone walking towards your table.
- "Y/n?" You look up & it's Jimin, who looks visibly drunk.
- That must be him who caused the ruckus earlier.
- "Hi, long time no see." Not wanting to cause anymore fuss, you politely greet him.
- "Y/n ssi, do you want to leave?" Hoseok's voice is heavy with concern.
- "Shut up! Who are you? I'm talking to my wife." Jimin yells at him.
- "Ex-wife." You remind him.
- Hoseok rises from his seat, disgust written all over his face, but you quickly put your hand over his.
- "It's ok." You smile at him assuringly.
- "Y/n ah, I need to talk to you. In private." Jimin says as he throws a mean glance at Hoseok.
- "Hoseok ssi, can you please wait outside & give us a minute? I promise it won't take long." You apologetically ask him.
- "That's fine. Take all the time you need, I'll be right outside. Just call if you need me." He squeezes your hand & abruptly leaves the table.
- "What do you want to talk about?" You ask Jimin once Hoseok is gone.
- "I want to apologize for my mistakes. I know that I was a complete jerk for cheating on you back then & for accusing you of leaking those pictures. I found out that Minji was indeed the one who leaked them because some paparazzi offered her money. Anw, I've realized my mistakes now, so can you please take me back? I swear I will be forever faithful to you." He pleads.
- You're too stunned by his selfish & ignorant request to even say anything.
- "What do you say Y/n ah? Let's just get back together."
- "Park Jimin, why would I take you back? During those years I was married to you, you treated me like nothing but a mannequin. You'd never truly respected or cherished me. Everything nice that you did for me was just for show, for your own ego & public image. So, thank you for your proposal but I don't want to get married to you again. Once was more than enough for this lifetime." You scoff & rise from your seat.
- "Wait! I beg you Y/n ah. The company cut all of my contracts, my reputation is down the drain. If I lose you too, I'll have nothing left." He cries, droplets of tears roll down his flushed face.
- "You've lost me that night when you chose her over me. Good bye & I hope I'll never see you again." You slide his hand off & walk away, leaving him crying alone at the table.
- "Check, please. For my table & whatever damage that guy has caused." You say to the waitress while pointing to Jimin & handing her your black credit card.
- It feels like the heavy weight in your heart is finally gone for good.
- You walk out of the restaurant with a huge smile on your face & it grows even wider when you see Hoseok standing outside waiting for you.
- "I'm truly sorry for ruining our date." You apologize to him.
- "Don't be. It wasn't your fault. Is everything settled now?"
- "Yes, thanks. So.. should we go somewhere else & continue our date then? If you want to that is." You shyly ask.
- He seems surprised by your question, but then he offers you his arm.
- "Sure, it would be my pleasure."
- As you leave Jimin behind & you've come to a realization that you've stopped loving Jimin.

"The opposite of loving is not hating, but leaving." -Haesoo, Scarlet Heart Ryeo