The days drifted by, and Jenny had fallen into a predictable rhythm: work, training, family. Each day was a bancing act, one she had mastered with grace. But something was stirring inside her, something she couldn’t ignore. Even after everything that had happened, after all the hurt, she still found herself looking over her shoulder, wondering when or if she'd bump into Li Wei again.

  And then, the universe answered.

  Jenny’s company had recently moved to an office closer to the heart of the city, and to her dismay, the building where their new office was located was the same one where Li Wei’s company had its headquarters. The st thing she wanted was to be near him again, but there they were—sharing the same hallways, the same elevator, and in some cases, the same rooms.

  Their interactions were minimal, polite even, but there was an unmistakable tension whenever their paths crossed. Jenny could feel it—every time they saw each other, it was like the air grew thick with unspoken words. The silence between them was louder than anything they could have said.

  People noticed. The whispers began.

  “I heard they used to date,” someone murmured one day in the break room, unaware that Jenny was standing just a few feet away, pretending not to listen. “I don’t know, they don’t look like they get along now. He barely looks at her.”

  Another person chimed in. “I think he still has feelings for her. He just doesn’t know how to deal with it.”

  Jenny stiffened at the mention of his name. It was like a phantom that followed her everywhere. She didn’t want to care. She had moved on. But the constant reminders, the whispers, the stares—they were harder to ignore.

  The tension was palpable. And for Jenny, it was exhausting.

  One afternoon, Jenny found herself standing by the coffee machine when Li Wei walked in. The sound of the door opening seemed to freeze everything in the room. She looked at him out of the corner of her eye, and for a moment, the world felt strangely still.

  Li Wei didn’t acknowledge her, his eyes trained on the coffee machine. He moved with his usual grace, but his body was stiff, as if he were trying to keep a safe distance.

  Jenny felt her heart rate spike, but she pushed it down. No. He doesn’t matter. Not anymore.

  But despite her inner monologue, she couldn’t help but speak.

  "How’s everything?" she asked, keeping her voice as neutral as possible.

  Li Wei paused for a moment, his hand hovering over the coffee pot. His eyes flicked toward her, but he didn’t say anything at first. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he replied, his voice cold and distant.

  "Good," he said, his tone ft. "Busy."

  That was it. No more words, no more gnces. Just the sound of the coffee machine humming between them.

  Jenny clenched her fists at her sides. She didn’t want this. She didn’t want the emptiness of these brief interactions. She wanted the person she had known—the person who had made her ugh, the person who had made her feel seen. But that person was gone. And in his pce stood a stranger who refused to even acknowledge the past.

  The silence hung heavy, but Jenny refused to let it break her. She grabbed her coffee and walked away, her heart pounding in her chest. She couldn’t do this anymore.

  As the days passed, the tension only grew. Jenny couldn’t help but notice the looks people gave them when they shared the same space—how they watched for the smallest sign that something might be happening between them, some flicker of old affection.

  One day, a younger colleague, curious about the atmosphere between Jenny and Li Wei, couldn’t help herself.

  “So, are you two... okay?” she asked, her eyes flicking between the two of them. “You seem a little... tense.”

  Jenny froze. The question was innocent enough, but it felt like a bomb had gone off in the room. She swallowed hard, her throat tight as she tried to find the right words. Before she could answer, Li Wei stepped in, his tone sharper than Jenny had expected.

  “Everything’s fine,” he said, his voice clipped. “Just work, you know?”

  The emphasis on the word "work" stung, but Jenny didn’t flinch. She forced a smile, masking the hurt she felt.

  “Yeah. Just work,” she echoed, her voice steadier than she felt.

  But the truth was, nothing felt "fine." Not when every moment with him felt like a reminder of what they had lost.

  Later that evening, as the office started to empty out, Jenny found herself at her desk, staring at her computer screen. She could feel Li Wei’s presence nearby, his shadow passing by her peripheral vision. Her heart lurched. She could practically hear the unspoken words hanging between them.

  Suddenly, the door to the office opened, and there he was. Li Wei, standing in the doorway, his face unreadable.

  “You left your jacket in the conference room,” he said, his voice low.

  Jenny blinked, surprised. “I did?”

  “Yeah. Thought you might need it,” he replied, stepping into the room, holding out the jacket.

  For a moment, they just stood there, looking at each other. The tension was unbearable.

  Finally, Jenny broke the silence.

  “Why do you do this?” Her voice cracked, though she tried to keep it steady. “Why do you keep pretending like nothing happened? Like we were never anything?”

  Li Wei’s eyes darkened, but he didn’t answer right away. He shifted uncomfortably, his jaw tightening.

  “I don’t know what you want me to say,” he finally muttered.

  Jenny’s heart was pounding, but she pressed on, her frustration boiling over. “I don’t need anything from you. But I want you to stop treating me like I’m invisible. I want you to stop pretending that I’m just someone you pass in the hallway.”

  There was a long pause. Li Wei’s expression remained unreadable, but his eyes—those eyes—betrayed him. Jenny could see the conflict there, the struggle to keep his emotions in check.

  “I can’t,” he whispered. “I can’t do that.”

  Jenny’s heart sank. “Why? Why can’t you just be honest?”

  “Because it’s easier this way,” he replied, his voice rough. “It hurts less.”

  Jenny stepped back, her breath catching in her throat. “It hurts, Li Wei. It hurts to pretend like we were nothing. You don’t get to make the decision for both of us.”

  Li Wei’s eyes hardened, but before he could respond, Jenny turned away, her chest tightening with every step. She had made her point. But deep down, she knew—nothing was ever going to change.

  And maybe, just maybe, that was for the best.