MK lingered in the parking space far longer than she needed to. She stayed standing beside her car, pretending to adjust her coat, pretending to look for her keys, pretending she wasn't waiting for something as fragile and desperate as a voice calling her name.
She waited until the night grew cold enough to sneak under her clothes.
No footsteps came.
No voice.
No "MK, wait."
Eventually she exhaled—long and defeated—and slipped into the driver's seat.
"She doesn't want to see me," she thought as she fastened her seatbelt with trembling fingers. "But she helped me back there… she took my side."
The contradiction sat heavy in her mind as she drove, the neon lights of the club fading behind her in the mirror.
What MK didn't know was that Shriya had been there the entire time—standing tall on the rooftop, hands gripping the cold railing, eyes following MK as she walked away. She didn't blink until MK's car merged into the street and disappeared into the night.
MK reached her apartment with her stomach swirling. She paced through the living room, her keys thrown carelessly onto the couch. She expected… something. A knock at the door, even a soft one. A call. A message. A sign.
Anything.
But the hours dragged on like heavy chains. The clock ticked louder than usual. MK lay in bed tossing and turning, and her thoughts kept clawing at each other inside her skull.
She's over you.
No, she kissed you.
No—you kissed her.
No, she kissed you back.
"What's happening to me?" MK whispered, her hands pressed to her face.
Sleep never truly claimed her. It just circled her in thin, restless loops.
Three days passed.
Still nothing.
MK's chest grew tighter with each morning she woke up hoping for a message that wasn't there. She wanted to call Jesse and ask her what this all meant—every broken piece, every confusing inch of it—but she knew Jesse was looking after Ashley and juggling a job that swallowed her time whole.
MK tried focusing on work, burying herself under the weight of being a CEO, but even that didn't help. If anything, it gave her empty spaces between meetings where her thoughts could creep back in.
Each night, the silence grew heavier.
A week passed before MK finally snapped.
She couldn't hold it anymore. The tension in her chest was unbearable. She needed to know—to hear something, even if the truth cut her open.
She called Jesse.
After listening to MK rant and spiral through every possible scenario, Jesse sighed.
"Maybe she's busy."
"You don't think she moved on?" MK asked, voice too soft.
"MK, I'm miles away," Jesse said flatly. "How would I know? Why don't you go find out instead of torturing yourself?"
MK didn't confide in anyone but Jesse. This whole thing—this fear, this longing, this confusion—felt new and raw and terrifying.
But Jesse was right.
MK needed answers.
She drove to the new club where Shriya was head of security, expecting to find her in her usual position—straight-backed, alert, commanding the entire place with effortless power.
But people only shook their heads.
"Shriya hasn't been here in a week."
MK's stomach dropped.
A week.
The same week she had been waiting.
The same week she had been staring at her phone.
"Maybe she's with Peach and Leah," MK muttered to herself as she hurried back into her car.
Those two always knew where Shriya was.
She drove to their club, pushing through the door with a tense breath.
"MK," Peach said immediately, faking enthusiasm so poorly it was almost painful. "What are you doing here?"
MK swallowed. "I want to talk to Shriya. Is she here?"
Peach and Leah exchanged a look—long, loaded, as if weighing what to say, or whether they even should.
"Ohh… Shriya," Peach said slowly. "She's not here."
MK's chest tightened. "Can you tell me where she is?" Her voice softened, almost pleading. "Please."
Peach's expression softened, but she hesitated.
Leah didn't.
"Why?" she asked, voice sharp, eyes narrowing. "What do you want with her?"
MK blinked. "What do you mean?"
"Oh, now you don't know?" Leah snapped.
MK stepped back at the sudden hostility.
"Leah—calm down," Peach murmured, trying to place a hand on her friend's arm.
"Don't tell me to calm down!" Leah burst. "She breaks up with Shriya—do you know how devastated Shriya was?"
MK froze.
"She waited for you," Leah said. "Not for days. For years. Even after you left, she kept hoping. You think she didn't try to fix it? You ran before she could even explain."
"It's been two years," Leah continued, her voice rising. "Two years Shriya waited for her. And then she comes back, acting all fine, and what does she do? She shows up with a queen of a girlfriend, flaunting it in front of her like it's nothing! You broke her all over again. And you expect Shriya to just… what? Smile?"
MK's breath stopped.
Peach grabbed Leah's hand, but Leah pulled it away.
"And now what?" Leah spat, stepping toward MK. "Now you kiss her? With a girlfriend waiting for you at home?"
MK felt her throat tighten.
"That's not—"
"Shriya feels guilty because of you," Peach said. "She thinks you'll hate her for letting it happen."
"Hate her? Why would I—" MK blinked hard, eyes burning. "I love her."
The room went very still.
Leah scoffed. "Love? That's what you call love? You have a girlfriend! For words sake"
"I…" MK swallowed hard. "I broke up with Ashley."
"What?" Leah said sharply. "She found out you cheated? Is that why she dumped you—and now you're running back here?"
The words hit MK like a slap. The sting spread through her chest, cruel but not entirely undeserved.
Peach finally stepped in. "MK… Shriya didn't want to come between you and your girlfriend. That's why she left town."
MK blinked. "Left?"
"She's in the capital," Peach said quietly.
"Peach!" Leah shouted.
"What? It's not our fight," Peach muttered, tired. She scribbled something on a small piece of paper and handed it to MK.
MK took it carefully. "Thank you."
Leah grabbed MK's hand tightly before she could leave. "If you break her heart again—"
MK met her eyes firmly. "Don't worry. I'm here to stay."
Leah slowly released her.
MK walked out of the club with the address shaking between her fingers.
She had to wait until the weekend.
She had a company to run.
Responsibilities anchoring her.
But her heart was already on the road—already halfway to the capital.
She hadn't realized until now…
just how selfish she had been.
And how much pain Shriya had been carrying alone.