Maxim stood in a busy crowd, looking aty figure of the familiar person.
His heart felt heavy with guilt.
It's like he wanted to avoid her, then he wanted to see her, and then avoid her and see her and so on and so forth as he believed it to be.
"Svetlana?"
He called, but it was hard to hear him over the noisy surroundings.
In his mind, he convinced himself that he had forgotten about her and their purpose for being here— for Svetlana to confess to her crush.
The excitement of the new game and improving his martial arts skills had made him forget about the people he cared about.
Yet, when Maxim saw Svetlana, he realized something.
He hadn't just forgotten her, he had intentionally ignored her earlier.
He didn't want to be close to her anymore, like he didn't want her to be his business.
So he wanted to set her free and let someone else have her heart.
Accepting this, Maxim felt calm and wondered if he should talk to her and break the silence.
He hadn't seen her since the apocalypse started, but he still remembered her even though they were just friends.
It took him a hundred years to forget her and let go of his sadness.
Let go of her memories and his ideals about her— it took a very long time as he could remember.
Meanwhile, Svetlana stood in front of Maxim, feeling both excited and uneasy.
"Maxim-"
She mumbled silently while her soft hands were on her chest.
She wondered what had happened to him and why he had changed so much. Svetlana knew him well, from the time he confessed his feelings to her and got rejected, to when he became her closest friend.
They had spent many hours together, sharing their dreams and supporting each other.
Maxim is her friend and she swore that she isn't feeling a thing.
But something was different today.
It's like seeing him in a new light.
To the point that Polina, a person with a Slovakian goddess face, a talented Martial Artist, and a young actress was curious about him.
Eager to know about him.
Dying to know about him for some unknown reason.
While Svetlana felt a tug in her heart, like she didn't like it, she didn't like Polina asking anything about him.
Now in front of her, Svetlana's face were red.
"What's wrong with me? Why am I thinking about Maxim?"
She asked curiously.
"When?"
And she noticed his changes, yes— a change.
She knew everything about Maxim but recently Maxim changed.
Looking at Maxim's confident look, Svetlana's heart throb.
She felt like she was going to lose something precious to her.
and Maxim started changing when she told him about her plan to confess her feelings to someone else.
She frowned as she realized the connection.
"No," she whispered to herself.
"His changes began when I told him about my intention to confess to the guy I've been longing for since yesterday…"
Suddenly, she understood something and couldn't believe it.
"Don't tell me..."
She whispered quietly, looking surprised and scared.
After that, Svetlana began shivering, "Does he have feelings for me but because of the news I relayed on him yesterday, he decided to change-"
She was beginning to feel a mixture of emotions, being betrayed, and feeling like she was about to lose something big.
Soon her emotion began to swirl and her instincts began to kicked in.
Like it was saying— I need to leave, I need to leave.
Meanwhile, Maxim felt unsure and confused as he stood in front of Svetlana.
He had so many thoughts racing in his mind, but he couldn't bring himself to say anything.
He didn't know what to do in this situation, and he had mixed feelings inside him.
But despite feeling conflicted, Maxim cleared his throat and decided to break the silence.
He wanted to express his happiness at seeing his old friend again.
"It's nice to see you again, my friend," he wanted to say, with warmth in his voice.
"How are you?"
But just as he was about to speak and say those words, something interrupted the moment.
Polina appeared from behind Svetlana, waving her hand, and Maxim's intentions were disrupted.
He stopped abruptly when he saw Polina's gaze, and her smile had a strong effect on him.
He had raised his hand to stop Svetlana, but now it was frozen in the air, unable to move.
"Hi," Polina greeted, looking at Maxim.
Soon, Polina eyed Svetlana in the eyes.
They exchanged a silent message, and Svetlana nodded quickly before hurrying away, clearly restless.
"Huh?"
Seeing Svetlana walk away, Maxim wanted to reach out and stop her from leaving. But his hands refused to move, as if they had a mind of their own.
Instead, his mind went back to the past, remembering a bittersweet memory.
He remembered Svetlana's happy smile as she stood next to the man she chose over him.
The pain of that moment came back, mixing with the present, and Maxim started questioning himself.
"Why am I even thinking about this? She was happy, and our relationship is over. I should be content," he quietly pondered, smiling sadly.
"I have dreams and a future that involves many other people."
Maxim's voice sounded resigned, but there was determination behind his words.
"If I can protect her future as it was in the past, then I, Maxim Vladimir Romanov, will be satisfied."
With a heavy heart, Maxim watched as Svetlana walked away, gradually getting smaller in the distance among the crowd.
His eyes showed a deep sadness, a mix of longing and acceptance.
He knew that the path he had chosen would be difficult, but he was determined to pursue his own destiny, even if it meant sacrificing his personal desires.
He wasn't even sure if he still had feelings for her anymore, so it was better not to say anything.
Maxim stood alone on the busy street, feeling weighed down by his thoughts.
As he thought about what to do next, he felt a strong disgust towards himself, as if he couldn't stand the idea of his own actions.
How could someone with experience and knowledge stoop so low as to hurt others?
Was this really the path he wanted to take?
His mind briefly went to Svetlana, a woman whose heart and love seemed within his reach.
Maxim believed that his experience gave him an advantage, that he could easily win her affection.
But at what cost?
Would he truly be happy knowing the pain he caused others?
Why not let her be?
He was sure he wouldn't feel satisfied if he took Svetlana away from her future where she was smiling.
After all, it would be dishonest.
The thought left a bitter taste in his mouth, showing the conflict inside him.
As soon as Svetlana's shadow disappeared in the busy crowd, somehow, Maxim felt calm.
It's like calm raging heart that was waiting for something, for a long time, and now it's free.
Dancing in the cloud, feeling the soothing breeze of the wind, and calmly looking up from above with freedom in his eyes.
Then he realized something, "Why do I feel so free?"
He questioned himself and then, out of curiosity on himself, not long after that, he found the answer in his head.
"I get it now…
"I wanted her to walk away in the first place because I need her to.
"In the past I tried to forget about her, I thought I had moved on but the truth was, I did not.
"Yes, it's her…
"It's her presence that somehow set me free, set her free, set both of free…"
In the midst of his inner clarity, a voice broke the silence.
Polina, an intriguing figure in Maxim's life, dared to speak up. Her words surprised Maxim and interrupted his thoughts.
"Sir," she started cautiously.
"Are you the person from the game?
"The one who sent us a warning message in the MMORPG game?
"And then, to everyone's surprise, won the UFA in a series of battle with a single kick alone?"
Maxim blinked, taken aback by the unexpected barrage of questions.
He looked at Polina closely, trying to find answers in her eyes.
Why was she here, mentioning the warning message and his recent achievements?
The pieces of the puzzle started coming together in Maxim's mind.
He had a moment of understanding and realized that this encounter was not a coincidence.
It was part of his grand plan, a carefully arranged piece of the larger picture.
Without dwelling on the implications, Maxim smiled.
He spoke with admiration and respect in his voice as he addressed Polina.
"You're impressive," he said sincerely.