Pressed against the cold wall, her breath shallow and quiet, the figure listening to every word was none other than Talotkan herself. Her eyes brimmed with tears.....tears born from the ache in her heart. It hurt to realize that her belief had always been true: fate always ran opposite to the meaning of a name.
She knew what Yim meant...happiness. And yet, looking at her now, shattered beyond recognition, Talotkan's chest tightened with sorrow.
---
Flashback: Before Yim Arrived
Earlier that day, Talotkan had opened her old wooden mailbox. Inside was a letter from a client, requesting that their clothes be delivered as they couldn't come in person. Reading it, she tilted her head back, eyes gazing at the gray sky above, and let out a long, heavy sigh.
Then she turned to her grandmother and said softly,
"Grandma, I'm going to deliver Aunt Uni's dyed clothes. I'll be back soon."
In truth, she was desperate for an excuse to leave....because facing Yim was the last thing she wanted.
---
The wind outside was cool, brushing gently against her damp skin, bringing with it a sense of serenity. The monsoon was coming...msomething Talotkan had always loved. The heavy clouds draped across the horizon, their shadows kissing the lush green trees, looked like a painting brought to life.
As she rode her motorbike down the winding rural path, raindrops began to fall, light at first, then heavier, until they soaked her completely. Talotkan didn't mind. She loved the rain....the way it felt against her skin, the way it seemed to wash away her hidden grief drop by drop.
For that fleeting moment, she felt free.
---
By the time she returned after completing the delivery, rain still clinging to her like a second skin, a strange unease stirred inside her. She noticed a car parked in front of her house....a car she recognized instantly.
Yim.
Her heart skipped. Quietly, Talotkan parked her bike in the garage and tiptoed toward the house, her clothes dripping water onto the cold concrete floor.
But what she saw when she entered… froze her completely.
There, sitting on the worn-out mat beside Grandma, was Yim....weeping uncontrollably in her arms.
Talotkan had never once seen her smile, much less cry. And now, to see her like this...broken, vulnerable, her voice choked with pain....it was like watching a dream shatter in slow motion.
For a moment, Talotkan couldn't move. Her mind spun with a single thought: So it isn't just me. It isn't just my cursed name…
She had always believed that only her life was the opposite of what her name meant. But now, looking at Yim, the truth struck her like lightning...it happens to everyone.
She stood there, silent as a ghost, listening to every confession, every scar carved into Yim's words, feeling them burn into her own heart as if they were etched in ink upon her soul.
And then, a sharp realization cut through her....one that left her breathless. She had broken her vow. The vow she made long ago… to never hurt anyone's heart.
---
Flashback Ends
Without a word, without even turning back, Talotkan walked away. Her footsteps were light, almost soundless, as if carrying the weight of her guilt. She headed toward the garage, raindrops sliding from her hair and mixing with the tears she refused to let fall.