LOGINGeston went completely still, frozen in his wheelchair. He did not move at all—only his tears slid down in silence.At last, he understood that what he had believed to be a match made in heaven was nothing more than my long-planned, deliberate devotion."Later, the boy's first love returned, and everything changed. The girl still loved him humbly and pitifully. Then one day, he fell seriously ill and needed a kidney transplant."She was afraid he would worry, afraid he would be scared. She didn't tell him how grave his condition really was, only said it was a minor problem. But behind his back, she used every overseas connection her family had. At any cost, she paid an astronomical price and found a perfectly matched kidney for him in the shortest possible time. That kidney could have saved his life."But what did that man do when the hospital called him? Without hesitation, he gave the life-saving kidney to his first love. When the girl cried and questioned him, he only said light
To move me, Geston began obsessively reliving the past.One by one, he counted out those moments of sweetness I had once treasured as priceless.Every detail, he remembered with painful clarity.He believed these memories could awaken the last traces of love in my heart, that they would soften me.He looked at me, his eyes full of hope.But I only listened quietly, my face still and unmoved.When he finished, the café fell back into silence.After a long while, I lifted the coffee that had long since gone cold and took a sip. Then I raised my eyes to meet his expectant gaze and spoke."Geston, let me tell you a story."He froze, clearly not understanding why I would suddenly say that.Ignoring his confusion, I continued."Long ago, there was a very, very young girl. One winter, the snow fell heavily. She went to a fair with her parents, but the crowd was so thick that she got separated from them."She stood alone in the bustling street. It was freezing. Snowflakes landed on
That afternoon, I had just come out of the lab and was heading to the campus café to buy a hot latte.By the window sat a wheelchair, and on it was a man. He wore a thick wool coat, yet it could not hide how frail and gaunt he had become. His cheeks were deeply sunken, his skin the waxy yellow of someone long ill. His eye sockets were hollow, his lips cracked, and a heavy air of death clung to him.Even so, I recognized him at once. It was Geston.I met his gaze calmly for a few seconds, then looked away as if nothing had happened.After getting my coffee, I turned at once and headed for the other exit. I had no desire to entangle myself with him."Vi… Don't go… please…" His voice carried a fragile plea. The wheels of his chair made a faint sound as they rolled over the wooden floor.I stopped, but did not turn around."Can we… talk?" he begged. "Just five minutes."I was silent for a moment. In the end, I turned back to face him.Up close, he looked even more haggard than bef
"His condition has gotten much worse," the lawyer whispered, as if afraid someone might overhear."I heard it's already in the late stage. He has to undergo dialysis several times a week now. He's wasted away to the point of being barely recognizable and is almost completely confined to his hospital bed."The most critical issue is his blood type. It's extremely rare—a special subtype of the rare Rh-negative blood type. There isn't a single matching kidney in the domestic donor registry."For the past six months, the Hughes family has pulled every string they could, even raising the reward to a seven-figure sum, but they still haven't found a suitable donor."Hearing this, my heart remained perfectly calm.This was karma. Nothing more, nothing less.He had personally given away the only kidney that might have saved him. Now that it was gone for good, who could he blame?"But that's not even the most dramatic part," the lawyer continued, suddenly sounding excited. "The real spect
My fingertip slid across the screen, and I pressed the red reject call button without hesitation.The world fell instantly silent.I leaned back in my seat, pulled down my eye mask, and sank into complete darkness.The roar of the engines didn't irritate me at all. Instead, it seemed to grind up every trace of exhaustion, grievance, and bitterness from the past three years—and carry them up into the sky with the plane.During the more than ten-hour flight, I slept more soundly than I ever had before.No nightmares. No sudden waking. Not even a single thought of Geston.When the plane landed smoothly and the cabin doors opened, a rush of unfamiliar air tinged with the scent of the ocean filled my lungs.I took a deep breath and felt as if even my insides had been washed clean.After turning my phone back on, just as expected, it was immediately flooded with unread messages and missed-call notifications. The screen lagged for more than half a minute before it finally recovered.
Daphne laughed until her shoulders shook, as if savoring the collapse and despair she expected to see on my face.Instead, I only looked at her quietly and nodded."Mm. I know."Daphne's laughter cut off abruptly. She stared at me in disbelief, as though she had seen a ghost."That's all the reaction you have?""What else should I do?" I asked calmly. "Cry and beg you to give Geston back to me?""You—" She was left speechless, her face flushing red with anger.I stood up and looked down at her from above."Daphne, I'll give you everything you want. I just hope you can hold on to it."With that, I didn't spare her another glance and turned to walk out of the ward.Behind me came her shrill, furious screams and the sound of something shattering.After that, Geston came home less and less often. He had to tend to his fragile first love, while also dealing with the crushing workload at the company. His entire person withered at a pace visible to the naked eye.He thought he was







