The elevator doors closed.
And for four years…
the woman Alexander Shen thought he had lost forever was standing less than two meters away from him.
But he didn’t know.
I stood with my back against the elevator wall.
My fingers tightened around my handbag.
I had imagined seeing Alexander again many times.
I imagined anger.
I imagined asking him why.
I imagined forcing him to admit that I had never been enough.
But now that he was actually here…
I felt strangely calm.
Because the man behind me was no longer the man I had spent two years chasing.
He was only someone from my past.
Someone laughed.
“So, General Shen, after four years, do you still regret letting Scarlett leave?”
Silence.
Then Alexander answered.
“I don’t know.”
Those three words surprised everyone.
Including me.
Because Alexander Shen had always known everything.
What to do.
What to say.
How to control every situation.
But now…
he hesitated.
The man continued teasing.
“You don’t know?”
“Didn’t you say back then that divorce was her choice?”
Alexander remained silent.
Then his low voice sounded.
“Yes.”
“But I didn’t understand why she chose it.”
My heart moved slightly.
Not because I was touched.
Because I suddenly realized something.
Four years had passed.
And he still didn’t understand.
Another person laughed.
“Maybe because you were too cold.”
“Scarlett was the kind of woman who needed someone to chase her.”
“You never chased.”
“You never showed jealousy.”
“You never fought for her.”
The elevator became quiet.
Then Alexander said:
“Was that what she wanted?”
His voice was softer.
“I thought…”
He stopped.
Everyone waited.
“I thought giving her freedom was loving her.”
My breath stopped.
Four years ago.
When I asked him:
“Do you even care if I leave?”
He answered:
“If staying makes you unhappy, I won’t force you.”
At that time, I thought he didn’t care.
Now…
I suddenly wondered.
Had I misunderstood?
The elevator reached the lobby.
The doors opened.
Everyone walked out.
I remained still for one second longer.
Then I stepped forward.
And walked past him.
But before I could leave…
Alexander spoke.
“Scarlett.”
My footsteps stopped.
Slowly.
I turned around.
Four years.
Four years since I last saw him.
He looked older.
Not much.
But enough.
There were faint shadows under his eyes.
A tiredness that didn’t exist before.
His gaze fell on me.
And for the first time in my life…
Alexander Shen looked surprised.
Really surprised.
“You’re back.”
I smiled politely.
“Yes.”
A simple answer.
A stranger’s answer.
His fingers moved slightly.
A small habit I remembered.
Whenever Alexander was nervous, he touched his watch.
Four years ago, I thought he was incapable of nervousness.
Apparently…
I was wrong.
“You heard everything?”
I looked at him.
“Yes.”
His expression changed.
“Scarlett…”
I interrupted.
“General Shen.”
That title made him freeze.
Because I had never called him that.
Not even when we fought.
Not even when I was angry.
I always called him Alexander.
“Do you still hate me?”
The question came suddenly.
I looked at him.
Four years ago, I would have cried.
I would have said:
“I never hated you.”
“I only wanted you to love me.”
But now…
I only smiled.
“No.”
His eyes moved.
“No?”
“I don’t hate you.”
“Then why…”
He stopped.
Because he couldn’t ask.
Why did you leave?
He knew the answer.
I looked at him calmly.
“Because I finally understood something.”
“What?”
“You weren’t a cold person.”
A pause.
“You were just warm to someone else.”
His face changed.
For the first time…
I saw pain.
Real pain.
“Scarlett.”
His voice lowered.
“Elena and I…”
I raised my hand.
“Don’t explain.”
“But—”
“I spent four years learning how to accept the truth.”
I looked away.
“I don’t need you to make it easier for yourself.”
The silence between us was heavy.
Then Alexander said:
“I divorced Elena.”
I looked back.
That sentence surprised me.
“When?”
“Three years ago.”
I frowned.
“Why?”
He looked at me.
And answered quietly:
“Because I realized I had spent my entire life protecting someone who never chose me.”
I didn’t respond.
Because those words…
sounded painfully familiar.
Alexander took a step closer.
“Scarlett.”
“Four years ago, when you asked me if I loved you…”
“I didn’t answer.”
“Because I thought love was something that would only distract me.”
A pause.
“I was wrong.”
The city lights reflected in his eyes.
“I lost the only person who never asked me to become someone else.”
My fingers tightened.
Because some words arrive too late.
And a late truth…
is still late.
Before I could answer, a woman’s voice suddenly came from behind.
“General Shen.”
We both turned.
A woman stood there.
Elegant.
Calm.
Familiar.
Elena Lin.
She looked at me.
Then at Alexander.
And smiled.
“Four years passed.”
“But it seems…”
“Some people still haven’t moved on.”
Alexander’s expression immediately changed.
Not the cold military expression.
Something else.
Warning.
I looked between them.
And suddenly understood.
This reunion…
was not accidental.
Because Elena had not appeared after four years because of coincidence.
She had come because she knew I was back.
And the next thing she said…
made Alexander’s face lose all color.
“Scarlett.”
She smiled.
“You should know the truth about why Alexander married you.”
The elevator doors slowly closed behind us.
And for the first time…
I realized my marriage with Alexander Shen might not have been a simple contract.
Someone had hidden the real reason.
And that secret…
was the reason he lost me.
TO BE CONTINUED…
