Another year passed. Sidney crouched in front of her mother's tombstone, wiping the dust off the photo on top. She was the only one who came here all year.
The man standing behind her didn't move, respecting Sidney's moment of mourning.
After a while, she stood up.
"Would you like to move to a spot closer to here? It would be easier for you to visit more often." This place was remote and desolate, located on a mountain. If it could be moved somewhere more suitable…
"It's been here for so long. There's nothing wrong with it. I'll come, no matter how far it is." Please don't disturb her, Sidney thought.
Jayson followed Sidney as she paid her respects to the gravestone, quietly murmuring something under his breath that she couldn't quite make out. On the way back, in the car, Sidney asked him about it.
"I was talking to my mother-in-law."
The wind was strong today, carrying grains of sand with it, and the earth still had traces of mud from yesterday's rain. As the car bumped along the winding mountain roads, the ride was rough, making Sidney feel the unevenness with every jolt. Sitting in the passenger seat, her thoughts wandered back to what had happened between them.
Being together in marriage is much like a car driving on the road—it's inevitable to encounter bumps along the way. Perhaps back then, she was so overwhelmed with sorrow, caught in a self-pitying rut, or maybe it was her tendency, built from childhood, to avoid problems and wish things would go away if she didn't see them. Even though she was already in a marriage, she still imagined an escape route for herself, running away on her own, leaving Jayson behind.
Later, the changes he made for her truly moved her, and she found herself reflecting deeply on her own actions.
That day, without warning, her heart softened.
Seeing him look so worn out from his day, she invited him to stay for dinner. Neither of them wanted to part ways too quickly.
She brought up the laser treatment receipt in his room. Was he really going to remove the tattoo?
Jayson said calmly, "If I'm going to change, I'll change completely. I don't even want this anymore."
At the dinner table, both of them were distracted, their minds swirling with thoughts about what was to come, and what would happen next.
After the meal, Sidney quietly washed the dishes in Jayson's kitchen. Jayson opened the cabinet, took out a beautifully designed cookbook, and handed it to her after she finished washing and drying her hands.
He looked at the text with a serious expression, his demeanor still carrying that quiet authority. "It's in a language I should understand, but I can't make sense of it," he said, and somehow, the words felt out of place.
Sidney smiled upon hearing this.
"The last time, I managed to turn the braised eggplant into something like burnt charcoal." He said, and Sidney couldn't help but burst into laughter.
It felt good—she was laughing. Jayson thought to himself that maybe it wasn't so bad to occasionally poke fun at himself.
"I'm only good at tasting food. When it comes to actually cooking, I can't do it. It's too hard, even harder than running a company."
"Exaggerated!" Sidney laughed at him, taking the cookbook back into her hands. She remembered which dishes she had made the last time, and the look Jayson had given her when he tasted them.
Although they had met because of marriage, when she thought back on the time they spent together, there were still moments of happiness.
"No way. This thing in my hands is practically a weapon. You take it."
Sidney ran her finger over the recipe, both of them knowing that all the words spoken were just a way to wait—waiting for the right moment, a moment of closure, to let each other back into their lives.
She pressed her lips together, then after a brief pause, nodded softly.
Jayson embraced her again. Though not as excited as when he first came back, his heart still stirred. He kissed her forehead carefully, as if she were a precious treasure. Seeing that Sidney didn't reject him, he softly kissed her lips, just a brief touch.
Perhaps he had been starved for too long, because he found his heart racing at this kiss. Normally, a kiss was nothing to Jayson—"nervous" wasn't something that would happen to him.
He pretended to remain calm, gradually deepening the kiss, but Sidney couldn't handle it and pushed him away.
"D-Do you want some fruit?" It had only been a day since they reconciled. Wasn't this moving too fast? She felt conflicted inside.
He whispered teasingly in her ear, "Right now, I only want to eat you…"
Sidney's face turned bright red, and she turned away, too embarrassed to look at him.
Jayson pushed her onto the kitchen counter, and their kiss deepened with passion. Perhaps it was because his heart longed for this person to give him another chance at love. Their breaths became heavier, and the quiet house quickly filled with desire.
Sidney, her heart pounding, gently rubbed the fabric of his shirt on his back. Suddenly, she remembered something and shyly began unbuttoning his shirt.
Sidney had become more active, which surprised Jayson. It gave him even more encouragement, and he wanted to devour her completely.
She turned his body around, carefully studying his back. It was probably from his first laser session, and unless you looked closely, you wouldn't even be able to tell where the ink was fading.
"It's not noticeable," she said.
"I didn't have enough time last time, I'll go again next time. That way, it'll fade more—"
"Don't remove it." She pressed her face to his back, feeling warmth. "This tattoo is beautiful, I really like it. Please leave it for me." "Don't remove it." She pressed her face to his back, feeling warmth. "This tattoo is beautiful, I really like it. Please leave it for me."
She sat on the counter, almost eye-level with him, kissing his back, each section of color—inch by inch, piece by piece—from the trapezius beside his shoulder blade down to the latissimus dorsi. And with each kiss, it felt like something inside her stirred…
