Chapter 5
After hanging up, I moved immediately.
I booked the tickets, confirmed the itinerary–everything in one smooth rush.
Then I dashed back to the bedroom and started stuffing thick coats, thermal layers, my camera, and a tripod into my
suitcase as fast as I could.
I moved so quickly that even my tears couldn’t keep up.
Until a single, burning drop finally splashed onto the back of my hand. While fumbling through the packing, I sniffed
hard and comforted myself in a thick, nasal voice:
“Penny, look–last life. I missed it. This time, I can’t miss it again. Right?”
These next few days might be rough. Long travel, freezing cold… but Penny, let’s push through and capture the most
beautiful aurora. Then–then I’ll buy you that bag you’ve always wanted. How does that sound?”
I planned the future with forced enthusiasm while wiping away tears in utter disarray.
Out of the corner of my eye, I caught my reflection in the mirror.
Swollen eyes. Messy hair.
Yet my hands didn’t stop, shoving down jackets and spare camera batteries into the suitcase.
This look of mine was…
A little ridiculous. And a little heartbreaking.
But I knew one thing: I was moving forward.
Even if I was crying while I walked.
A little after five in the morning, before dawn broke, I was already on the plane.
Outside the cabin windows, the night was pitch–black.
Inside, the lights were dim, and most passengers were catching up on sleep.
I felt no hint of drowsiness, staring out the window, lost in thought.
Just after eight, the plane landed in Frostwood.
A blast of frigid, dry air hit my face.
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Once outside the airport, my friend and I ate a steaming bowl of local Hearty Beef Noodle Soup, and warmth spread through me from the inside out.
Chloe couldn’t help but speak up.
“I honestly thought you wouldn’t come this time.”
“Every time I asked before, you always said… You had to stay home and keep an eye on your husband, so other women.
wouldn’t steal him.”
I swallowed the last sip of soup, let out a satisfied breath, and replied calmly,
“What’s a man compared to my career?”
Her eyes went wide as she looked me up and down in disbelief, like she’d just heard something absurd.
“Coming from you? I don’t buy it at all. Who possessed you?”
I tugged at the corner of my mouth but didn’t respond.
Because even I couldn’t quite believe how naturally those words had come out of my mouth.
Almost unconsciously, I pulled out my phone and unlocked it.
The screen lit up to my chat with Hunter, still frozen on the message I’d sent yesterday afternoon:
[Hey babe, it’s our sixth anniversary. You have to come home tonight, okay? I prepared a surprise and cooked all your
favorites.]
I scrolled up.
A long stretch of blue message bubbles filled the screen. Almost all of them were my one–sided questions, updates, and
waiting.
Compared to that, his replies were sparse and half hearted, barely there at all. I turned off the screen and slipped the
phone back into my pocket.
Forget it.
Why waste even a shred of energy on someone who never truly belonged to me?
After finishing the meal, Chloe and I boarded the overnight train to Aurora Falls. For a full seventeen hours, I leaned
against the window, watching the endless, flowing snowfields slide past outside.
The rhythmic clatter of the tracks and the passing white wilderness created a hypnotic, almost meditative backdrop.
The tension in my body gradually loosened, and drowsiness finally crept in.
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By the time the train arrived, it was well past midnight.
The moment we stepped off, the biting cold made us shiver uncontrollably.
The ground was buried beneath thick, compacted snow.
Dragging our luggage, we checked into a pre–arranged lodge.
I slept straight through until the afternoon.
Then my friend and I set off for Northern Lights Village.
I wore my thickest down jacket, scarf, and hat, wrapped up from head to toe.
I looked like a clumsy bear, yet the cold still seeped straight into my bones.
Each breath of icy air stabbed my lungs.
Heat packs warmed my knees, but they still creaked faintly as I walked.
Traveling with us was a young couple we’d met on the train.
The girl was lively and cheerful, the boy calm and considerate, and they hadn’t stopped talking the entire journey.
*I heard making a wish under the aurora is super effective!” the girl said, looping her arm through her boyfriend’s, eyes
sparkling.
“Yeah,” he replied gently, lowering his head to look at her. “If we get to see it… We’ll be happy for a lifetime.”
They leaned into each other, white breath intertwining in the air.
Their faces were full of anticipation and sweetness.
That smile–pure and radiant–looked like two small flames burning warmly in this frozen world.
Watching them, I felt no jealousy.
No bitterness.
Just a quiet, sincere happiness.
That’s good.
This world should have people who are happy like that.
And I was here for myself.
With a friend.
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With Penny.
That, too, was pretty good.
