Chapter 2
Last year, Leopold started coming home late all the time. Whenever I asked, he'd just say he was working overtime.
One day, I made soup for him and brought it to his office, but the receptionist told me he'd already left.
Standing there in the empty office, holding the thermos, I suddenly felt like a joke.
Over the years, I'd lost myself.
The Veronica who used to be independent, confident, and proud had changed.
I had become someone whose only purpose was to please a man, groveling in the dust, desperate for his approval.
Then I remembered what Philip once said.
"If you don't love yourself, how can you expect anyone else to?"
I knew that he was right.
If I didn't even love myself, I could not expect anyone else to love me.
They would just keep wounding my lost soul, again and again, until I was covered in scars and became his slave.
Suddenly, I just felt free, like I could finally let it all go.
It wasn't some deep revelation or anything. It just hit me that it was not worth it.
This guy wasn't worth me turning into someone I didn't even recognize.
This relationship wasn't worth throwing my whole life away for.
I stood up and bowed respectfully to Philip.
Philip picked up a red protective knot from the tray beside him and handed it to me. "Take this, girl. Walk your path well from now on."
I took the knot, carefully put it away, and strode down the mountain.
The mountain wind brushed against my face, carrying a sharp freshness unique to the highlands.
I gazed at the endless snow-capped peaks in the distance, and for the first time, I realized just how blue the sky was and how clean the air felt. It was amazing just to be alive.
Just as I reached the foot of the mountain, my phone rang.
Leopold 's name flashed on the screen.
I paused for a couple of seconds before picking up.
But the voice that came through wasn't Leopold's. It was a young girl's, sickly sweet.
"Hi, is this Veronica?"
My heart dropped.
"I'm Gloria. Leopold told me about you. Veronica, Leopold's at my place right now. He's taking a shower."
She was laughing.
It was the smug laugh of someone who thought she had already won.
"Veronica, let me tell you. Leopold said he's wanted to divorce you for ages. He just didn't have the guts to say it.
"Look at you now, throwing tantrums, threatening to off yourself, and begging him like a loser. It's honestly pathetic.
"If you're smart, just do yourself a favor and get the divorce over with, so we can all stop being embarrassed."
My hand shook as I gripped the phone.
Her voice dripped with sarcasm. "Do you really think hanging onto the Mrs. Soto title makes you special?
"What's the difference between you and those gold-diggers out there, clinging to a man just for the money?"
I wondered if her words were true.
I took a deep breath, and suddenly everything in my head became clear.
"Back when I was spending money on that man next to you, you didn't even exist in his world," I shot back.
She went silent on the other end.
I said, "We built that company together, and every dollar in it is half mine.
"Even if we divorce, I could take at least half. And now that he's cheating, I could clean him out and leave him with nothing."
My voice was cold as ice.
"You're the real gold-digger here. Your heart's filthy, so you see everyone else as dirty too."
Without another word, I ended the call.
The mountain wind swept over me as I stood there by the road, and I just started laughing.
It wasn't a bitter laugh. It was actually funny.
I was fighting over a guy with a twenty-year-old.
I was actually ready to lose it all over some guy who cheated on me.
I actually let myself become such a lowly person.
I gazed at the church's golden rooftop in the distance, remembering what Philip once said. Suddenly, I realized that Leopold and I really were from two different worlds now.
Maybe I never truly understood Leopold.
He was never someone who belonged in my world, which was so clean and simple.
He was just a master of disguise, slipping into my world to snatch its fruits for himself.
Now that he had gotten what he came for, it was time for him to go.
It was time for me to move on, too.
I slipped my phone into my pocket and walked down the mountain.
Behind me, the church bells echoed, like they were bidding farewell to a woman who'd finally woken up.
*****
That night, I checked into a small inn at the foot of the mountain.
The innkeeper, a Dordorian woman in her forties, took one look at how skinny I was and made me a steaming cup of coffee.
"Did you come here alone?" she asked.
"Yes," I replied.
"Are you okay? Did something happen?" she asked.
I smiled, holding the cup. "I'm fine, just here to see the place."
She didn't ask any more and went off to take care of the other guests.
After finishing the coffee, I felt a bit warmer inside. I stepped out of the inn, hoping to find somewhere to grab a bite.