Yuna sat quietly on the bed, her fingers nervously tracing the edge of the blanket as Elena stayed beside her, patient and attentive. The silence between them wasn't empty—it was waiting. Waiting for Yuna to say what had been building inside her.
"Elena…" Yuna finally spoke, her voice low, uncertain.
Elena turned fully toward her, her expression soft. "Hmm?"
Yuna hesitated, then looked down again. "Ethan said… he loves me."
Elena didn't react with surprise. She had expected this, in some way. Instead, she just nodded gently. "I know."
Yuna's brows furrowed slightly. "You know?"
Elena gave a small, knowing smile. "I've seen it for a while. He's just… not good at saying things."
Yuna let out a faint, humorless breath. "Yeah… he chose the worst time to say it."
That made Elena sigh softly. "Feelings don't really wait for the right time."
Yuna shook her head slowly, her emotions starting to surface again. "But I don't understand myself," she admitted. "I thought I knew what I felt… but now…" Her voice trembled slightly. "Now I don't even recognize it."
Elena didn't interrupt.
"I'm not able to feel for him like before," Yuna continued, her words coming faster now. "Every time I look at him, I remember what he did to my father." Her fingers tightened into the blanket. "And it hurts."
Elena nodded, her voice calm. "That makes sense."
"But at the same time…" Yuna's voice cracked, "…I'm not only angry at him."
She looked up, her eyes filled with confusion. "That's what I don't understand. I should hate him. I should want nothing to do with him. But I don't."
Elena leaned slightly closer, listening carefully.
"I feel angry," Yuna said, her breathing uneven now. "I feel like I want to scream at him… to hurt him the same way I'm hurting." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "Sometimes I even feel like I want to kill him."
The words hung heavy in the air.
"But I can't," she added quickly, shaking her head. "I can't even think about actually doing it."
Tears filled her eyes again.
"Because I love him."
That was the truth she couldn't escape.
Yuna covered her face with her hands for a moment, overwhelmed. "What kind of feeling is this?" she cried softly. "How can I love someone and hate them at the same time?"
Elena gently reached out and pulled her into a careful hug, mindful of her condition. "It's not wrong," she said softly.
Yuna shook her head against her. "It feels wrong."
"It feels confusing," Elena corrected gently. "There's a difference."
Yuna pulled back slightly, looking at her. "Then what am I supposed to do?"
Elena took a deep breath, choosing her words carefully. "First… stop thinking that you have to decide everything right now."
"But I can't stay like this forever," Yuna said.
"You don't have to," Elena replied calmly. "But you also don't have to rush into a decision just because your feelings are messy."
Yuna looked unconvinced. "It doesn't feel like 'messy'. It feels like everything is broken."
Elena nodded slowly. "That's because something did break. Your trust. Your understanding of him. Your past. All of it got shaken at once."
Yuna's eyes dropped again.
"So it's normal that your feelings don't make sense right now," Elena continued. "You're trying to hold two truths at the same time."
"What truths?" Yuna asked quietly.
"That he hurt you," Elena said. "And that you love him."
Yuna went silent.
"You're not choosing one over the other yet," Elena added. "You're just… feeling both."
Yuna swallowed hard. "It's exhausting."
"I know," Elena said softly.
Another pause.
Then Yuna whispered, "What if I never feel the same again?"
Elena didn't answer immediately.
Instead, she asked, "Do you want to feel the same again?"
That question caught Yuna off guard.
"I…" she hesitated. "I don't know."
Elena gave a small nod. "That's okay."
"But what if this feeling stays forever?" Yuna pressed. "What if I always see him like this?"
"Then you'll deal with it when you're stronger," Elena said simply.
Yuna frowned slightly. "That's not an answer."
"It is," Elena replied gently. "Just not the kind you want right now."
Yuna sighed, frustrated. "You're telling me to just… wait?"
"I'm telling you to heal first," Elena corrected. "You went through too much in one day. You lost your father… you lost your baby… and you found out the truth about the person you love."
Yuna's eyes filled again at that.
"That's not something anyone processes overnight," Elena continued.
Yuna wiped her tears weakly. "But what about Ethan?"
"What about him?" Elena asked.
"He's just… there," Yuna said. "Waiting. Acting like he'll accept whatever I decide."
Elena smiled faintly. "That's probably the most honest thing he's done."
Yuna looked at her, confused.
"He's not forcing you," Elena explained. "Not defending himself too much. Not asking you to forgive him immediately."
Yuna thought about that.
It was true.
"He knows he hurt you," Elena added. "And he's giving you space to feel it."
Yuna's voice softened. "That makes it harder."
Elena nodded. "Of course it does."
Silence settled again.
Then Yuna whispered, "What if I push him away… and regret it later?"
"Then you'll deal with that regret," Elena said honestly.
Yuna blinked. "That sounds harsh."
"It's real," Elena replied. "There's no perfect choice here, Yuna. No option without pain."
That truth sank in slowly.
Yuna leaned back against the bed, her energy fading again. "I hate this," she murmured.
"I know."
"I wish things were simple."
"They never are," Elena said softly.
Yuna closed her eyes for a moment. "Do you think he really loves me?"
Elena didn't hesitate. "Yes."
Yuna opened her eyes again. "Even after everything?"
"Especially after everything," Elena replied.
Yuna looked away again, her thoughts spinning.
"And what about you?" Elena asked gently.
Yuna hesitated.
Then, quietly—
"I love him."
The words came out softer this time.
Less confused.
More honest.
Elena smiled faintly, squeezing her hand. "Then don't ignore that."
"I'm not," Yuna said. "I just… don't know what to do with it."
"You don't have to do anything with it yet," Elena said.
Yuna let out a slow breath.
And for the first time—
She didn't try to solve it.
She just let it exist.
Love.
Anger.
Pain.
All at once.
And maybe—
For now—
That was enough.
Yuna stayed quiet after that, her thoughts still tangled but not as overwhelming as before. Elena didn't rush her, didn't try to fill the silence. She just stayed there, her presence steady, giving Yuna the space to breathe through everything she was feeling.
After a while, Yuna spoke again, her voice softer now. "Do you think he hates himself?"
Elena looked at her, slightly surprised by the question, but then she understood where it was coming from.
"No," Elena said gently. "I don't think he hates himself."
Yuna frowned a little. "Then how can he just… live with what he's done?"
Elena exhaled slowly. "Because that's the kind of life he's had to live," she explained. "People like Ethan… they don't always get the luxury of breaking down over every decision. If they did, they wouldn't survive in the world they're in."
Yuna listened carefully.
"But that doesn't mean he doesn't feel anything," Elena added. "It just means he learned how to carry it differently."
Yuna's gaze dropped again. "He didn't look like he was okay yesterday."
"He wasn't," Elena said simply.
That made Yuna's chest tighten slightly.
"I've known him for years," Elena continued. "And I can tell you this—he's never looked like that before. Not even close."
Yuna swallowed.
"So… he's hurting too?" she asked quietly.
Elena gave a small nod. "In his own way, yes."
Yuna leaned back slightly, processing that.
"I keep thinking…" she said slowly, "if he knew everything about my father… why didn't he tell me earlier?"
Elena didn't answer immediately this time.
"Because he knew it would hurt you," she said after a moment.
Yuna let out a weak breath. "It hurt more finding out like this."
"I know," Elena said softly. "But from his side… maybe there was never a 'right' way to tell you."
Yuna thought about that.
And for once—
She didn't argue.
Her fingers relaxed slightly against the blanket, her breathing calmer now.
"I don't want to hate him," she admitted quietly.
"Then don't force yourself to," Elena replied.
"But I also don't want to just forgive him like nothing happened."
"And you shouldn't," Elena said firmly.
Yuna looked at her again.
"You're allowed to take your time," Elena continued. "You're allowed to feel everything you're feeling. Love doesn't cancel out pain… and pain doesn't cancel out love."
Yuna's eyes softened slightly at that.
It didn't fix anything.
But it made it easier to sit with.
"I'm tired," Yuna whispered after a moment.
Elena smiled gently. "Then rest."
Yuna nodded, slowly closing her eyes again.
But this time—
Her thoughts weren't fighting each other as loudly.
They were still there.
But quieter.
And for now—
That was enough.