Kaye gently pressed the doorbell, and the creaking gate revealed a kindly old man. Standing in front of Ivan's grandpa's house, Kaye's familiarity with the place stemmed from Ivan's previous mention during a conversation about his life after arriving in the country. Ivan had shared details about his grandpa, and that information guided Kaye to the right address.
"Good day, what can I do for you?" the old man inquired.
Kaye responded with a warm smile, "Good day, grandpa. I'm Ivan's friend, and I've come to deliver something for him. He mentioned he'd be visiting here."
The old man studied her, wondering if she might be his grandson's elusive muse. Since arriving in this country, Ivan hasn't introduced any friends to his grandpa; instead, he exclusively spoke about his muse.
"You must be Kaye?" the grandpa asked, surprising Kaye with his familiarity.
"Hehe, he visited us earlier, but he's already left. I'm sorry," the grandpa explained.
Kaye frowned. She attempted to call Ivan, but her calls went unanswered. Perhaps he was occupied or had left his phone behind.
"It's alright; allow me to offer you this. Consider it a token of my visit. I'm delighted to meet you, grandpa," she expressed, handing over a small box of freshly baked cookies.
She prepared lunch and baked cookies at the same time.
The grandpa's eyes lit up at the sight of the cookies. "Hoho! Thanks for this. It's nice meeting you too. Next time, please visit us again with Ivan."
"I will, grandpa. I shall take my leave now. Bye, grandpa!" Kaye bid her farewell and departed.
.
.
Ivan gazed at the church before him. Once a priest and a paladin, he abandoned those roles, for the sake of his love for Kaye.
Meandering outside, he encountered a vendor peddling roses.
"Mr. Handsome, please buy some for your girlfriend," the youthful vendor urged.
He stared at the roses, then glanced at his wristwatch; he had to return home now.
He went to visit his grandpa. After the visit, he went to a shop and bought strings for his violin. Realizing he had left his phone at his grandpa's house, he made plans to retrieve it. His attention was diverted when he noticed the church.
But as the afternoon unfolded, the necessity to depart tugged at him. His gaze returned to the roses, a subtle smile playing on his lips.
.
.
....
Kaye went to Rein's practice, bringing along the cookies she had specially made for him. As an underground racer, finding the location of Rein's practice was a challenge, requiring her to message him for directions.
"Duckling!" Rein approached her, helmet in hand, having just completed his laps.
"I watched you earlier; you're too fast," she complimented.
"Ha! I'm great, right? No one can beat me in this field," he proudly declared.
They sat down, and she presented the cookies to him.
"Thanks for this. I never thought you'd make one for me. I can still remember how we used to despise each other in the past," Rein chuckled.
Kaye joined in the laughter. "You're right, but I'm grateful that we ended up becoming friends," she said, glancing at the field. "I never imagined you would become a racer."
"At first, I didn't like racing, but after attending practices and watching other racers, I began to like it," Rein explained.
"I think it suits your personality. You hate losing," she remarked.
"Yes, it infuriates me when someone tries to steal victory from me," he smirked.
"But you must always be careful. What if you lose control?" she expressed concern.
"Pft. I can control my bike properly. Wait, you're worried about me?" he teased.
"Of course, I am. You are my brother-in-law," she stated.
Rein fell silent upon hearing the term brother-in-law, realizing that Kaye only saw him as a brother. It pained him.
"Tsk," he looked away.
Noticing his silence, Kaye asked, "Did I say something wrong?"
A moment of silence enveloped them before Rein took a deep breath, looked into her eyes, and spoke.
"Kaye... Can I also love you?" he confessed.
Kaye was stunned. Wait... Why do they keep confessing to her?
"Rein, you are Raon's brother," she reminded.
"I don't care!" he stood up. "I like you too, Kaye! I followed you here not only because of my brother but also because I wanted to see you again. You have no idea how sad I am after you passed away in the Serolf Empire. Every day, I regret not confessing to you and being a coward!"
"If your brother hears about this, he will be upset," she warned, picking up her bag.
Rein held her hand, preventing her from leaving. "Kaye... I know this is hard for you. I don't care if my brother hates me. But please... Please believe in my feelings."
"Do you want to get beaten by your brother?" Kaye remarked.
"He can beat me; I don't care. But he can't stop me," Rein asserted.
"Why do you like me too? Why do you guys keep confessing to me?" she questioned.
Rein averted his gaze. "Because you're different. I can't explain why I love you; I only realized my heart was pounding too fast every time you were around, and I felt jealousy when your husbands were always by your side."
Sighing, Kaye, trying to hold back tears, faced him with a bitter smile.
"Rein... Thanks for loving me. I hope you will forgive me someday," she said, and then ran away.
Rein was left surprised and confused. He tried to chase her, but she was no longer outside; she had already left.
Inside the taxi, Kaye was in tears, overwhelmed with guilt, suffering, anxiety, and depression. She couldn't bear it any longer. Why? Why do you all have to love me? Please don't love me! I betrayed each one of you.
.
.
The taxi dropped her off outside their workplace building. She called Tin and Rubie, asking them to meet. Tin approached with a worried expression.
"Kaye, why did you suddenly call us? And why did you take your day off today? Did something happen?" Tin asked anxiously.
She shook her head and smiled. "Nothing happened; I just wanted to give you my baked cookies. I made them while I was at home," she explained.
"Wow! These look delicious, Kaye," Rubie exclaimed, gazing at the box.
"Hehe, I made them, so they're surely delicious. I haven't mentioned to you that I took a baking class when I was young," Kaye proudly shared.
Tin chuckled. "You were really born talented. But, Kaye, we can't stay outside longer. We are in the middle of our work," she reminded.
"I understand; I won't stay here longer as well. I only came to deliver these to you." Kaye hugged her two friends and then bid them goodbye.
The last place she visited was Fuentebella's headquarters. She had memorized the location during a previous visit with Mikhail.
"Uhmm... Excuse me?" she approached the intimidating-looking men guarding the building.
...
"What did you say?" Mikhail put down the documents and glanced at Kira.
"Miss Kaye was outside, looking for you, sir," Kira repeated.
Mikhail quickly left his office to see Kaye.
"Wifey!" Mikhail called out.
Kaye smiled and waved at him the moment she saw him. "Hubby!"
"What are you doing here? It's dangerous here," he said.
"Don't worry about me; your guards were all so nice to me," she said, pointing to the guards who were busy enjoying the cookies she had given them. They gave her a thumbs up with wide smiles on their faces. Mikhail's expression turned serious.
"I came here to give you this. Tadaa!" Kaye handed the box of cookies to him.
Mikhail smiled and kissed her cheek. "Thank you. You made this, so I'm sure it's delicious."
"Hehe..." she smiled.
"Come inside; it's dangerous if someone saw you here," he said.
"Ah, no. It's okay; I'm leaving too. I really only came here to give that to you," she said.
Mikhail raised an eyebrow. "You sure? Then I will ask Kira to drive you home."
"No need. I already hired a taxi to wait for me," she said.
"Alright, take care on your way home," he said.
Kaye glanced at the entrance of the building. "Uhmm... By the way, where's Benjamin and Warren?" she asked.
"They're not here; I ordered them to do a task for me. But I'm sure they're on their way back now," he replied.
And he was right; a car suddenly arrived, and Benjamin and Warren emerged from it.
"They're here," Mikhail said. "I will head inside now; take your time with them. See you later." Mikhail kissed her and left.
"Babe? What are you doing here?" Benjamin asked.
"Hehe, I came here to give these to you." She handed the cookies to Benjamin and Warren.
Benjamin smiled and kissed her forehead. "Thanks for this. The task was tiring, but I feel refreshed because of this."
Kaye smiled. She glanced at Warren.
Benjamin noticed it and decided to give the two some time. "I'm heading inside to report. See you later, Babe. Take care on your way home." He kissed her and left.
The two were left outside.
"Thanks for this," Warren said.
"You're welcome," she said.
Warren accompanied her as they walked back to the taxi.
"You should have messaged us if you were coming here; this place is full of gangsters. They don't know you, so they may harm you," Warren said.
"I will call you guys next time," she said. Next time? Will there be a next time?
That question echoed in her mind.
They stopped in front of the taxi.
"Thanks for accompanying me," she said. As she was about to get in the car, he spoke again.
"Kaye..." Warren said.
"Hmm?" she looked at him, waiting for what he was going to say.
She was surprised when he embraced her.
"W-Warren?" she muttered.
They stayed like that for a while until he broke free from the hug. Warren smiled. "Nothing, thanks for the food." He kissed her forehead and let her leave.
.
.
Inside the taxi, Kaye was consumed by guilt once again, eventually breaking into tears that cascaded throughout her entire travel. Retrieving her phone from her bag, she messaged everyone, pouring her heart out in a final farewell.
To Everyone,
Thank you for everything.
I will never forget all the goodness you've bestowed upon me, your love, care, and sacrifices to save me and reunite with me.
I'm sorry if I've caused trouble.
Despite my efforts to be a good wife, I have disappointed you all again.
This will be the last time; you will be fine after this.
If you come across this message, perhaps I've already departed from this world.
Please don't look for me.
Please don't hate me.
And please forgive me.
I'm truly sorry.
Always remember that I love you, and you will always be in my heart.
Take care of yourselves and forget about me in the future.
I love you... Goodbye.
After sending the message, she powered off her phone and tossed it out of the car. Staring out the window, she continued to cry.
"I'm sorry... I'm very sorry... If only I could turn back time, I would correct all my mistakes and prevent this from happening," she thought as the taxi passed by a bridge.
"S-Stop..." she said abruptly.
The driver halted, and she paid him before stepping out of the car. As the taxi drove away, she watched the sunset, tears streaming down her face.
Holding her belly, she whispered, "B-Baby... I'm sorry..."
Facing the deep water beneath the bridge, she wiped her tears. This is it – her final farewell to the world. Climbing onto the bridge railing, she closed her eyes and jumped.