I Can't Quit You | 2YEON

Chapter 1

Morning sunlight burst in through the open
curtains, framing Nayeon's round face. Her
skin was pale, but Jeongyeon knew how warm and soft it was. Her heart ached. It ached that she thought badly of Nayeon, that sometimes she simply wanted to leave. It ached for the loss of a beautiful relationship, one they had built from ruins, all the way into a shining, strong fortress. Now all their efforts were for naught. They could barely stand each other anymore. Married for 8 years, but it felt like the last year had been a prison sentence.

"Why didn't you wake me when my alarm didn't?" she asked to deflect, because Nayeon was right and that hurt.

"You came home late, didn't you? You needed to sleep."

"I need to manage the shop."

"The shop can manage itself. You know Jihyo
is well trained and she wouldn't let anything
happen. Is it so difficult to spend one pleasant
morning with your wife?"

Jeongyeon felt a snarky comment on her tongue, but it slipped back down her throat when Nayeon sent her a saddened gaze.

"I miss you," Nayeon admitted softly. She turned back to the stove, plated the food and then dumped the used dishes into the sink. She went over to the table to set the plates down,grabbed some cutlery and the syrup, and then waited before sitting. "Will you sit?"

Jeongyeon swallowed. Her throat felt tight, like she could hardly get any air down into her lungs. Her stomach lurched like she would throw up, but Nayeon's expression pulled her in. She relented and sat down opposite her, mouth dry and heart heavy. She had missed this too-simply enjoying breakfast together.

"How is work?" Nayeon started. She poured
syrup and melted chocolate onto her portion of pancakes, dropping berries on the top. "Must be busy. You're hardly ever home."

Jeongyeon felt awkward, her limbs heavy. She
mechanically reached for her own food and
stabbed the pancakes with her fork. "Um, it's
going fine. Yours?"

Nayeon's face pulled. jeongyeon found herself smiling lightly. "Ugh, sometimes I hate it."

"Can't be easy owning such a vast company,"
Jeongyeon added.

She slipped a slice of pancake past her lips, savored the texture on her tongue. She preferred it plain, unlike Nayeon who would douse it with enough sugar to make her double in weight almost instantly. But she wouldn't actually, since Nayeon ate whatever she wanted and never showed the proof on her body. Jeongyeon had always enjoyed that. No matter how much she ate, Nayeon was always tiny and petite. It was amusing at most.

"No, it isn't. It helps that father co-owns."

Jeongyeon frowned. "I'm sure it does."

Nayeon sent her a look, but turned back to
her food. They didn't say anything more. The
atmosphere shriveled up like a fish out in dry
air.

Jeongyeon's heart dropped into her stomach, making bile rise up in her throat. She hated feeling like this with Nayeon, but for the past year she had. They had nothing to say to each other. Nothing but work, and work was already a very dry subject. Jeongyeon considered asking any other benign question, but realized that with them being married, she should already know the answers. If she asked how Nayeon was emotionally, they would only be reminded of the rift between them. Of how they were basically strangers sleeping in the same bed.

Jeongyeon glanced up at the clock. The energy around them was suffocating, and she couldn't stuff anymore food down her throat. She coughed into her fist, pushed the plate away from her.

"Thanks for the food, it was great. I should get going." Away from here. Anywhere but here, where I don't have to look at you and wonder how we fell in love in the first place.

Nayeon's head shot up sharply. "Seriously?" her tone dropped low, threatening. "It hasn't even been five minutes."

Jeongyeon threw her jacket over her shoulder,
shrugging. "We can't even have a conversation for more than five minutes. There's nothing interesting to say."

She caught the glint of Nayeon's wedding ring, still bound around her finger. It made her stomach lurch again. Nayeon stood, eyes wide. "jeongyeon, I've barely seen you at all this week. No, I think this is the first time this week. You come home late, leave early. We never talk. We never have sex. Where is this leading? What are we doing?"

Jeongyeon narrowed her eyes. "Don't make it out like this is about me. You were the one that accepted the promotion a year ago. You were hardly ever home, and you pushed me aside to please your daddy and his buddies. This isn't on me."

Instead of responding with hurt, like Jeongyeon had expected, Nayeon narrowed her eyes. "I wasn't the one who decided to give up."

"Give up?" Jeongyeon exclaimed, anger rising. "Is that what we're doing? Because to me it seems like the fun times are over. We are strangers, Nayeon. When I look at you, I want to run."

Nayeon stepped back, feline eyes wide. They
filled with tears, but she didn't back down. It
looked like her anger intensified. "Have you
fallen out of love with me, Jeongyeon? Does our marriage mean nothing to you?"

Jeongyeon rolled her eyes. "I don't know what I feel. All I know is that I'm single and you're married to your work."

"I'm married to you!"

Like an unexpected fire, fed by the burning
embers of venom and frustration, Jeongyeon exploded.

"Then fucking act like it! I'm so sick and tired of being second best to you. It's either your job, or me. You can't fuck us both. I loved you, Nayeon. I loved you so fucking much. But now I have this gaping hole in my chest and you fucking put it there." Clenching her teeth hard, Jeongyeon ignored Nayeon's shouts and headed for the door. It slammed harshly behind her, but she didn't care.

She didn't pay for the house, not anymore. There was nothing left to care about.

Huffing in pain and anguish, Jeongyeon collapsed inside of her car and then fumbled on her phone for Jihyo's number. As soon as she picked up, Jeongyeon released a teary sigh.

"jihyo, please take over the shop for the next few days. I'm leaving." She paused, listening.

"Yeah, I think it's over. I need to think. Can you handle it?

Okay, thanks. I'll let you know when I'm back."

She didn't want to go back inside to fetch
any clothes, so she simply reversed out of
the driveway and headed to the city exit. She
couldn't do this anymore. She couldn't live an
empty, unfulfilling life with a woman she didn't
love anymore.

So she left, to someplace she didn't know, to
think about her failing marriage.