pter 13
But before he could finish his sentence, a long–buried memory resurfaced.
Two months ago, Zara had called him and said she had something important to discuss. At that time, he had been by Winry’s side, helping her recover from her car accident.
He hadn’t had the time or inclination to return home to see Zara. Instead, he had dismissed her with a casual remark. “I’m busy. Just handle it yourself. There’s no need to ask me.”
Upon remembering this, his expression darkened. Still, he was unwilling to accept that he’d indeed gotten divorced from Zara.
He pressed on, “When was the agreement signed?”
“Two months ago,” Jamie replied.
finality
The the answer crushed what little hope he had left. Soren’s mind became a tangled mess of emotions. He didn’t know whether to be angry at Zara for scheming against him or at himself for missing the signs that she had been planning the divorce for months.
Thinking back, it was around that time that her behavior had started to change.
But why?
Winry had only recently returned, and the most significant event had been him asking Zara to donate blood for her. Could that have been the reason? Would something so trivial drive her to divorce him so resolutely?
It was quite unsettling that Zara hadn’t shown the slightest regret over the past month.
Soren felt as though he had missed some crucial due. His breathing grew erratic, and frustration simmered beneath the surface.
Noticing his agitation, Winry tried to soothe him thinking his distress stemmed from feeling tricked.
She consoled, “Soren, it’s her loss if she doesn’t appreciate you. Please don’t stress yourself out. You have a weak heart. If something happens to you, it’ll be terrible.”
What was meant to be a comforting remark hit him like a bolt from the blue. It cleared the fog in his mind. He suddenly recalled the strange question Zara had asked him the day she donated her blood to Winry.
“I have only one question. Four years ago, you had a heart transplant. What was the donor’s name?”
“I only know his last name was Krause.”
“I see. Thank you.”
Chapters
“Why did you ask about that?”
“Just to confirm something.”
The memory replayed vividly in his mind. From that day onward, Zara suddenly stopped insisting on listening to his heartbeat to fall asleep. The once–obedient Zara began rejecting all his requests. Even the divorce talk had started shortly after that moment.
“Soren, are you okay?” Eddie’s cautious voice interrupted his thoughts, shattering his focus.
Soren froze as he was unwilling to delve deeper into what exactly she had been trying to confirm. He tried to reassure himself that it couldn’t be what he was thinking at that moment. She loved him too much to leave for any other reason.
“Everyone get out.”
It was evident that Soren’s mood worsened. Sensing this, Eddie and the others quickly filed out. Soon, only Soren and Winry were left in the room.
He turned to look at her. She had teared up because of his dismissive attitude. He paused for a moment and suppressed his irritation.
Zara never behaved like this–she never cried over a single word or due to his chilly tone. She had always been composed and self–contained. Except for the one incident with the necklace, she rarely showed him any negative emotions.
Still, he’d been obsessed with Winry for a long time. So, no matter how irritated he felt, he couldn’t bring himself to be too harsh with her.
With a sigh, he softened his tone. “You should go home. I’m tired and need to rest.
He then added, “Stop fantasizing about us getting together. I have no intention of divorcing
Zara.”
His words caused Winry to freeze in her seat. She stared at him in disbelief.
“What do you mean, Soren? If you’re not divorcing her, then what was the point of everything between us these past few weeks?” Winry questioned hotly.
Still avoiding her gaze, he closed his eyes and replied, “I’ve always thought of you as just a friend.”
“A friend?” Winry let out a bitter laugh.
The chair scraped loudly as she stood up, but neither of them seemed to register the sound. With her eyes locked onto his back, her voice rose with anger. “Are you saying that we’re just friends? Then explain this to me–do you treat all your friends like this?”
She pressed on, and her tone was cutting. “Will you drag your anemic wife to donate blood for someone who was merely an ordinary friend? You took care of that ‘friend‘ for an entire week
Chaud 11
but completely ignored your wife after she donated blood.
“You even came to that friend’s welcome–home party and left your wife stranded on a mountaintop. Later, you asked your wife to stay at a party where she was humiliated just because your friend wanted to continue with the game.
“You
let your parents give the Blights‘ family heirloom to your friend and not your wife. And when your wife nearly drowned, you forbade anyone from saving her just to protect that friend!
“Above all, you risked your life for that friend right in front of your wife!”
With every accusation, Soren’s face grew paler. Only now did he fully realize how cruel he had been to Zara. Just what had he been thinking at the time?
He had taken her love for granted. Convinced that she would never leave him, he did as he pleased. Even when he noticed that she was growing distant, he merely placated her without addressing the deeper issues.
He had chased after Winry for so long that his bias toward her had become second nature. His nepotism was purely out of habit.
But Zara’s departure made him see the truth–he couldn’t live without her.
“If I did anything to mislead you, I’m sorry,” he said quietly.
