1. "You ignored all my messages until now..."
2. "...but the moment I send one text about my divorce, you come running."
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1. "Were you just dying to say, "I told you so?""
1. "..."
2. "I thought you'd be more mature after 20 years..."
1. "...but you're the same as ever."
2. "We're too old to keep up this polite act..."
3. "...aren't we?"
1. "Anyway, how's dad?"
2. "He's out of the country."
3. "There's an inheritance issue now, thanks to you, so he has his hands full."
1. "Since when did that have anything to do with me...?"
2. "Isn't that why you called me here?"
3. "Living alone gets expensive, doesn't it?"
1. "How much do you want?"
2. "I can't say I'm living in luxury, but I'm not here to beg."
3. "That's not what this is about."
1. "...it was before."
1. "The last time you reached out, you were begging us to throw you a lifeline."
2. "Isn't that right?"
1. "..."
2. "So you've known this entire time."
3. "You knew, but you ignored me."
1. "You screwed up your own life. Why on earth should we be the ones to fix it?"
1. "We warned you what would happen if you ran off with that lowlife."
2. "And yet you still don't understand how the world works?"
1. "...you're not entirely wrong."
2. "I was naive."
1. "But let's not pretend you kicked me out to teach me some life lesson."
2. "You"
1. "You were just mad."
2. "Mad that I wouldn't obey you..."
3. "...mad that I dared to love on my own terms."
1. "You just wanted to see how I'd crash and burn."
2. "I only realized it recently."
1. "Love isn't proved with words. It's about being there for the other person."
2. "Even if you fight and hurt each other, what matters is that you make the effort to stay."
3. "You don't just walk away."
4. "..."
1. "...you think it was easy for me?"
2. "We worried about you more than anyone!"
1. "I know."
2. "But that's all it was - worry. It wasn't love, or support..."
1. "But I've come to accept that."
2. "That to some people, that's all I'll ever be."
1. "...ha!"
2. "You called me all the way here just to"
1. "Get that off your chest?!"
2. ""Mom, dad, I hated you!""
3. ""I've finally moved on from you guys...?!""
1. "?"
2. "And why shouldn't I?"
3. "You're the one who said I wasn't mature enough."
2. "How's"
1. "How'd it go?"
2. "Okay."
3. "I said whatever came to mind."
1. "Honestly, it was just me venting."
2. "Haha!"
3. "Good for you!"
1. "You did great, jin joo!"
2. "..."
1. We eventually moved out of the apartment...
1. ...and into the place I had originally prepared for jin joo.
2. It's a bit small, but once we sold off some of the old furniture, it was surprisingly nice and tidy.
3. Of course, everyone around me gave me an earful for
1. Gave me an earful for doing something so stupid.
2. (Fair enough. I basically wasted money on moving twice.)
3. Still, taking a year off school gave me some breathing room.
4. And I guess being close to my new hospital is a bonus.
2. "How did you first session go?"
3. "....mm, not bad."
4. "It was just a bit..."
1. I ended up having to rely on my parents for the therapy and treatment costs.
1. I didn't feel good about it, but morae was the one who gave me the wake-up call I needed.
2. "...just take it and pay them back later, dumbass."
3. She tore into me, but...
1. ...it worked.
2. "You still can't get through life alone."
1. It's a lesson I'm still struggling to accept...
2. But since it's jin joo who said it... I'm willing to give it some thought.
3. "So you finally managed to get in touch?"
1. "Oh...I did, yeah."
2. "He's still there..."
3. "The director."
1. At night, I sometimes wonder...
1. ... Where am I even supposed to start with cleaning up this mess?
2. "Ngh..."
1. "Haa..."
2. "...doyeon."
1. Is it even possible?
2. "Haa..."
3. "Haa..."
4. "..."
1. My therapist would probably tell me...
2. "Sex isn't a healthy outlet for stress."
3. "Be mindful not to use momentary pleasure as a way to avoid your problems."
1. "A quick dopamine hit can't be that bad."
2. "Feeling any better?"
1. "Mmhm."
2. "When I'm holding you like this...it feels like the noise in my head quiets down a bit."
1. "Really...?"
2. There are still moments when I can't tell if we're still codependent, or if we're growing together.
1. "Then I'll hold you even tighter."
2. But it doesn't scare me as much as it used to.
1. Maybe that's because jin joo's amazing at meeting people where they are.
1. ...I never knew admitting your flaws could feel this freeing.
1. "Goodnight, doyeon."
1. "Noona! You're going today, right?"
1. "Are you already on your way?"
1. "Nope, we're going to get some food first."
2. "You call her every five minutes like some kid who just got separated from his mom!"
3. "Okay, call me when you get there!"
1. "Oh, and I talked to your friends, and we were thinking of going on a trip to the countryside..."
2. "How does jeju sound? Would jin joo like to join?"
3. "And why the hell do you keep coming here?!"
1. "I have a boyfriend, you idiot!!"
2. "You wanna go too?"
1. "You're going for a few days. Did you pack all your bags?"
2. "Your undies?"
3. "And your birth control?"
4. "We're not close enough for you to be making those jokes, professor hwang."
1. "What?! But I'm your only friend."
2. How do I...block her...?
3. "Ready to leave?"
1. "Yup."
2. I tried contacting my friends at the orphanage...
1. ...but the director wouldn't give out any personal information for privacy reasons.
2. But he did say if I dropped by, he could help set something up.
3. Apparently, some of them never even left the neighborhood.
1. I moved to a new neighborhood.
2. "Haa..."
1. "Haa..."
1. Back then...I...
1. "Ready?"
1. "..."
1. "...no."
1. Love Thy Neighbor
2. The End
3. Thank you.
2. Support the author if you can. Join my discord if you'd like to get notified whenever I upload a chapter. https://discord.com/invite/MGDS6B2dfp
