She rolled the wheelchair in front of him, but he walked right past it without a nce.


    ra frowned, took a slow breath, and fell in step behind him. He was still hurt- determined as he was, he couldn''t get far before he had to stop and get his breath back.


    She waited quietly at his back. Aiden was up front driving, Dn in the back seat. ra slid in next to Dn, and the air in the car felt thick, heavy with things left unsaid.


    Aiden kept his eyes on the road. Dn had his eyes closed. ra didn''t bother breaking the silence.


    They drove like that until the car stopped in front of the civil affairs office. ra got out first, waiting outside for Dn.


    He stayed in the car for a moment, then slowly opened his eyes and stared at her through the open window. He''d looked at her like that before, but this time, there was something final in his gaze-like he was saying goodbye.


    Dn always did things his own way, always to the extreme. ra couldn''t shake the feeling that if they really went through with this divorce, she might never see him again.


    She tore her eyes away and said quietly, "Do you need help getting out?"


    He lowered hisshes, fingers resting lightly on the door handle. "No."


    His voice was weak and rough, but when he finally stood up on the pavement, he looked as calm as ever.


    ra walked ahead, stopping every so often to wait for him to catch up. He moved so slowly, wounded and stubborn, that the short walk to the entrance felt endless.


    A sharp, ufortable ache pressed against ra''s chest. She didn''t dare look


    at him, forcing herself to keep her emotions in check.


    Inside, the staff couldn''t hide their surprise when they saw them.


    It was the same woman who''d helped them get married-ra had protested


    back then that she was being forced, but the clerk had been too busy mopping sweat from her brow to listen. That day had left asting impression.


    No one expected these two woulde back to get divorced.


    The clerk nced instinctively at Dn.


    He looked pale, coughed a few times into his hand, but said nothing.


    ra walked straight over to the divorce window and handed over their paperwork. A couple of staff members who recognized Dn exchanged uneasy nces. He just stood there, not moving, like he''d been rooted to the spot.


    For some reason, the atmosphere in the office felt a little sad.


    ra forced a smile. "We get the divorce certificate here, right?"


    The clerk took a deep breath. "Hi, Ms. ra. There''s a new policy now."


    "What policy?"


    After flipping through their documents, the clerk turned to Dn. "Mr. Dn, do you also want to get divorced?"


    Dn pressed his lips together. "No."


    "If you two can''t agree, you''ll have go home and think it over for a


    month There''s a mane


    cooling-off period. We can just process the divorce right away."  s


    ra almost thought she''d misheard. When they got married, she''d said she didn''t want to, and the staff had acted like they couldn''t hear her at all Now for the divorce, Dn says no, and suddenly it matters.  s


    Someone like Dn-did he really need a cooling-off period?


    The clerk looked apologetic. "Ms. ra, please don''t make this harder for us.


    Come back in a month, and I promise I''ll handle everything for you."


    ra almostughed. She didn''t know what to say. If she kept arguing, she''d just be making a scene.


    She took a long breath and looked over at Dn.


    He stood quietly beside her, withdrawn and silent.


    ra couldn''t help but wonder if he''d known things would turn out this way.


    She didn''t want to drag it out. She turned and walked out of the office.


    Dn followed, but by the time ra reached the car, she realized she couldn''t hear his footsteps behind her.


    She turned and saw him leaning against a pir, sweat trickling down his nose—a picture of exhausted, fragile beauty.


    Her heart clenched, her throat tightening painfully.<fncfa1> This text is hosted at f?ndnovel</fncfa1>


    It was only a short walk, but it took him several minutes to cross the parking lot and reach the car.


    ra bit back the urge to ask how he was feeling. She looked off into the distance and said, "I''ll call a cab and go home. We''lle back in a month. With your health like this, a you really still nning on going to North America?"  s


    He stood by the open door, looking lost. "I don''t know."


    are


    It was like, after this, he had no idea what came next-like his whole life had


    suddenly lost its meaning.


    ra didn''t press him. Asking anything more would have sounded too much like she cared.