Ten years had passed… yet the memories refused to age.
London's morning sky was pale and cold, stretching endlessly above the glass towers that watched over the city like silent guardians. The streets were crowded, busy, noisy — but for Kim, every sound felt distant, almost unreal, as if he were walking through a world made of fog.
His steps echoed softly across the marble floor of the massive business district. His fingers trembled in his coat pockets, not because of the cold…
but because today mattered.
Today, he was here to rebuild a life that had been shattered a decade ago.
The building he approached stood like a giant among giants — a fifty-story tower of black glass with silver edges, sharp enough to cut the clouds.
Above the entrance, in bold letters, shone the name:
ARISON TEX — Global Clothing Corporation
(Korean Headquarters | London Division)
This was one of Korea's largest fashion and textile empires — and Kim had secured an interview after months of struggle.
He exhaled slowly.
"Ten years… and I'm still trying to outrun the same memories," he whispered to himself.
A memory flashed — her smile, her trembling voice, the goodbye neither of them fully understood. The pain in his chest was sudden, familiar, and deep… like an old scar tearing open again.
He stopped, swallowed hard, and lifted his head.
"No… not today. Not again."
He pushed open the glass door.
Inside was warmth, soft lighting, and the clean scent of expensive perfumes. Employees in formal suits walked past him, holding files, speaking in clipped English and Korean.
Kim tightened his grip on his bag.
Interview at 11:00 AM.
Human Resources, 14th Floor.
He stepped into the elevator and pressed the button.
As the doors closed, he caught a faint reflection of himself in the metal surface. Older. Sharper eyes. A sadness buried deep behind confidence he was still trying to build.
"Would she even recognize me now…?"
That thought stabbed him unexpectedly.
A soft ding — the elevator opened.
The 14th floor was quiet, decorated with white walls and minimalistic Korean art. Kim walked toward the waiting lounge, heart pounding like a war drum.
But the moment he turned the corner—
He stopped breathing.
A woman stood there, speaking to a receptionist. Her long dark hair flowed down her back, her voice calm yet firm. Her posture… elegant. Confident. Mature.
She looked exactly like someone from his past.
A ghost he was not prepared to face.
Kim froze.
His legs refused to move. His heartbeat became painfully loud inside his chest.
No… it can't be her. Not here. Not now.
But the woman turned slightly — and for a second, only a second — he thought he saw her eyes, the ones he used to love more than the whole world.
His throat tightened.
Before he could take a step forward, the elevator behind him opened again with a chime.
Another woman stepped out — tall, Korean, with sharp professional clothes, a sleek ponytail, and an aura that felt… powerful.
She noticed Kim immediately.
"Excuse me," she said in smooth English, "are you Kim Han-Sol? The applicant from India?"
Kim blinked, snapped out of the memory.
"Y-Yes, that's me."
She smiled faintly — not warm, but not cold either. A businesswoman's smile.
"I'm Jin Seo-Yeon, Deputy Director. I'll be supervising your interview today."
She extended her hand.
Kim shook it, trying to mask the storm building inside him.
"Please follow me," she said.
As they walked, Kim's eyes once again drifted toward the woman near the reception desk.
She was now facing away from him, talking on her phone.
Was she really… her?
Or just someone who carried the same shadow?
Kim felt something breaking quietly inside his chest — a familiar ache that had slept for ten years and suddenly awakened.
Seo-Yeon noticed his distraction.
"Is something wrong?" she asked.
Kim forced a smile.
"No… just nervous."
She looked at him for a moment longer, as if reading his emotions.
"Don't worry," she said softly. "Sometimes, life brings us exactly where we are meant to be."
Kim didn't understand what she meant — not yet.
But he followed her down the corridor anyway.
Unaware that fate… had just taken its first step.
And the woman near the reception?
She turned her head slightly — just enough to see Kim's back as he disappeared behind the office door.
Her eyes widened.
Her lips parted.
And her phone slipped slightly from her hand.
"…Kim…?"
But the door had already closed.
Chapter 18 END.
Chapter 19 coming soon…
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