Luc Hoai Sam called my name again.
—Vi Vi.
I stopped.
Not because I wanted to turn back.
But because that voice was too familiar.
For ten years, every time he called me like that, I would stop whatever I was doing.
I would wait.
I would turn around.
I would choose him.
But that day, holding the divorce certificate in my hand, I suddenly realized something.
I had spent half my life waiting for someone who had already chosen another path.
I slowly turned around.
Luc Hoai Sam was standing a few steps away.
The man who once held my hand in front of his entire family.
The man who broke three ribs just to marry me.
The man who told me that even death would not make him let go.
Now he looked at me like he wanted to say something but didn’t know where to begin.
—What else do you need?
My voice was calm.
His expression changed slightly.
—Nothing.
A pause.
—I’m just not used to you leaving so calmly.
I smiled faintly.
—What did you expect?
—That I would cry?
—That I would ask you not to leave me?
His fingers tightened.
—Vi Vi…
I interrupted him.
—Luc Hoai Sam, you already made your choice.
His face turned pale.
—It wasn’t that simple.
—You’re right.
I nodded.
—It wasn’t simple.
—Because if it had been simple, I would have left years ago.
The hallway became silent.
People passed by us, but neither of us moved.
I looked at him carefully.
For the first time, I didn’t see the young man who once protected me from everyone.
I saw a tired man.
A man who wanted forgiveness without understanding how much he had hurt me.
—Do you still love her?
I asked.
Luc Hoai Sam froze.
He didn’t answer.
That silence was enough.
I lowered my eyes.
—Then don’t call me back.
His lips moved.
—Vi Vi, I…
—You said you would agree to whatever I asked.
I looked directly at him.
—This is what I want.
—Never appear in front of me again.
The words were exactly what I had said when I first asked for divorce. :contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0}
This time, they weren’t said in anger.
They were a farewell.
Luc Hoai Sam stood there.
Unable to argue.
Unable to refuse.
Because he had promised.
And because he knew…
The woman who once gave up everything to follow him had finally stopped waiting.
Three days later, I left Hong Kong.
No farewell dinner.
No final meeting.
No last conversation.
Aunt Tran cried when she saw me leave.
—Madam… are you really not coming back?
I smiled.
—There was never a home here.
She looked at me sadly.
I looked back at the villa.
The place where I had spent ten years.
The place where I had once believed love could overcome everything.
Then I turned away.
This time, I didn’t look back.
Meanwhile, Luc Hoai Sam returned to the villa alone.
The house was exactly the same.
But something was missing.
The warm lights.
The smell of food.
The woman who always waited for him.
On the dining table was a small box.
Inside was his old fountain pen.
The one I gave him years ago.
And a note.
Only one sentence.
“Thank you for the ten years.”
Luc Hoai Sam stared at the words for a long time.
Then his phone rang.
It was Hua Niem Chau.
He looked at the screen.
But he didn’t answer.
Because for the first time…
he understood something he had never considered.
Losing me was not the consequence of choosing another woman.
It was the consequence of believing I would always stay.
And by the time he finally realized it…
I was already gone.
