After I Let Her Go, She Regrets It

After that day, my girlfriend went on another trip.

I saw her updates on Instagram.

She and her travel companion from the last time went to the snowfields. In a video, the two of them toasted each other, like at a wedding, after being cheered on by a group of locals.

They looked really happy.

In the past, whenever I saw photos of her and her travel companions, I would feel so suffocated that I could hardly breathe.

But today, I was surprisingly calm.

I casually deleted her number and went back to work.

My dad hadn't fully recovered, so after finishing my work, I still had to go to the hospital to take care of him.

A week passed like that.

For these seven days, I was swamped with work, but my mood remained steady.

I thought, if things continued like this, it would be just fine.

Unexpectedly, that evening, as I was leaving the hospital, I got a call from my girlfriend, Jasmine Meyers.

Seeing her familiar number, I felt a bit dazed and only answered after a moment.

As soon as the call connected, she started bombarding me with questions.

"Harvey Keller, what the hell is going on with you?! Why didn't you take my mom to the hospital for her follow-up yesterday?!

"Do you know the hospital called me today to chase it up?!"

Ever since we got together, I had been the one responsible for her mother's illness.

I was the one who took her to the hospital for weekly checkups and paid for her medications.

Jasmine only tagged along when she was free to show some filial piety.

When she was traveling, she hated being bothered by "trivial family matters."

In the past, I was always afraid of worrying and upsetting her, so I handled everything perfectly.

But now...

I said, "Jasmine, we've already broken up."

"You—" Jasmine was at a loss for words, clearly shocked.

After a while, she came back to her senses and asked, "What do you mean? You're serious about this?"

I found it somewhat amusing.

She stood me up on our wedding day, sending my dad to the hospital out of anger.

And she still thought I was joking about breaking up with her?

I didn't bother saying more, hung up the phone, and blocked her number while I was at it.

The next time I saw her was at the hospital.

I was there with my dad for his checkup when I saw Jasmine, holding onto a man's arm, at the payment counter.

The guy was young and handsome, and he looked familiar.

It was the travel companion who often appeared on her Instagram.

Jasmine noticed me too and came over, arm in arm with the guy.

"What a coincidence! What are you doing at the hospital?"

"Something came up," I said calmly.

"Oh right, let me introduce you. This is my new boyfriend, Ricky Deleon."

She looked at him with a sweet smile.

"We're both free spirits who love traveling. We really hit it off."

I nodded. "Congratulations."

Seeing I didn't react the way she expected, Jasmine looked a bit displeased.

"Isn't there anything you want to say?" she asked.

I hesitated for a moment. "Well... I wish you two a happy marriage?"

Back when I cared about her, I would've felt a knot in my chest, sick with heartache.

But now that I no longer cared, I didn't feel a thing.

Jasmine's face turned icy.

After a while, she spat through gritted teeth, "We'll have a happy marriage whether you say so or not!"

I calmly nodded and congratulated her again.

Jasmine, having failed to provoke me, stormed off in a huff.

I ignored her and headed to the inpatient department to find my dad.

I didn't bother keeping up with Jasmine's life until some time later when a college friend asked me out for dinner and mentioned her.

That was when I found out she had run into trouble.

"I heard her new boyfriend was a scammer.

"He swindled 10,000 dollars out of her and disappeared when he couldn't get more."

My friend leaned in with a gossipy look on his face.

I was a bit surprised. "How did you know?"

"She came to me a few days ago to borrow money, saying it was for her mom's treatment," my friend answered.

Then he waved his hand and continued, "But don't worry. I didn't lend her any. After what she pulled at the wedding, I'd have to be crazy to lend money to someone like that."

...

...

I frowned.

Now that we've already broken up, her problems are none of my concern.

...

But I didn't expect her to come to me.