CHAPTER 70: CHAPTER 70

~Li Anning~

I landed in Seoul with one suitcase, one backpack, and one mission: get Fan Xiao back before anyone stupid tried to steal him from me.

The airport smelled the same as when I left, which felt unfair. I had spent years bouncing between New York, LA, and Boston for school, internships, and one disastrous situationship with a guy who used the word "networking" like it was a personality. Meanwhile, Korea stayed the same. Maybe that was why I kept thinking about Fan Xiao while I was away. Everything around me changed, but my thoughts didn’t.

As I rolled my suitcase out of the terminal, my phone buzzed. Another notification from some tech article mentioning him again. "Young hacker prodigy...." "Catches corporate fraud...." "Rumored to be unstoppable...."

I clicked all of them. Every single time.

People bragged about graduating early or getting into Ivy League programs. I bragged about knowing Fan Xiao. I showed people screenshots of us as kids. I told groups of strangers about our arranged engagement like it was a romantic drama and not something our parents joked about over too much wine.

And every time someone said, "Do you actually like him?"

I answered, "Obviously."

Because I did. I always did.

I just stupidly thought I could go abroad, improve myself, give him space, and come back better.

But then I saw some posts online hinting that he might not be "single" anymore. I saw a blurry picture of him with some guy in a hospital hallway and almost threw my iPad across my New York apartment. I stayed up two nights searching everything about him online like some unhealthy PI.

My therapist would’ve yelled. Whatever.

So yeah. I booked a flight.

Fan Xiao didn’t know I was back.

But he was going to.

And he was going to be happy about it. Eventually. Probably after the shock. He was dramatic like that.

I had already seen him and he was with the guy but I’ll deal with that later, before I went to him, I wanted to see one person.

Hana.

My best friend since middle school. The only person I trusted with everything. The one who cried with me when my mother left, who kept sending me stupid reels through the worst parts of college, who listened to me rant about professors, roommates, exams, and Fan Xiao.

Also the one who got engaged before me.

To a man so handsome I used his photo as my lock screen once when I missed home.

Park Min.

Her perfect fiancé.

At least, that’s what I thought.

The news about him turning fully Alpha, and worse, taking in a male omega, had spread all over even in New York. I thought Hana had told me. But she never contacted me about it directly. Weird. So I assumed she was embarrassed or busy.

I figured I’d visit her, hug her, ask how she’s doing, then tell her everything I knew. No judgement. Just honesty. Like always.

I rode in the taxi to her neighborhood and smiled when I saw her building. Same cracks in the sidewalk. Same noisy teenagers downstairs. Same convenience store on the corner she always complained about but still bought ramen from every week.

I walked up the stairs, reached her door, and laughed out loud.

She still hadn’t changed the lock passcode.

It clicked open.

Some things never changed.

"Hana!" I called as I stepped inside.

Her apartment smelled like vanilla air freshener. I knew that scent anywhere.

She turned around from the kitchen, eyes huge, mouth falling open.

"Anning?" she whispered.

"Hana!"

I dropped my bag and ran to her. She ran too, but she tripped a little on her own sock, which made her slam into me harder than expected. We both almost fell but ended up clinging to each other.

We hugged, and she shook like she was holding her breath for too long.

"You’re here," she said against my shoulder.

"I’m here," I laughed. "Finally. You didn’t even change your lock? You’re insane."

She hit my arm. "Shut up. I didn’t think you’d use it after all this time."

"You should know better."

We hugged again, tighter. Then we jumped. Actually jumped. Like two idiots at a concert.

She pulled back, wiping her eyes. "Let me see you. Turn around."

I spun a little. She clapped. "You look so good."

"Obviously," I smirked. Then I leaned close. "Guess who else looks good?"

Her eyebrows rose. "Who?"

"My boyfriend."

Her mouth dropped open. "You have a boyfriend?! Who?!"

I grinned. "Fan Xiao."

She froze.

Then her smile flickered. Then returned quickly, too quickly. "Oh. Yeah. Right. You and him. Your engagement thing. You always talked about that."

"Because I meant it," I said. "I’ve been thinking about him nonstop. He’s everywhere. Articles, news, interviews. I swear the universe is telling me to go get him before someone else tries. So I came home."

Her eyes darted away from mine.

"Hana," I said, nudging her. "Why are you acting weird?"

"I’m not," she insisted, but her voice was too small.

"You’re lying," I said instantly.

She opened her mouth, probably to lie again, so I raised my hand. "Don’t even try. I know when you’re lying."

She turned away, shoulders stiff.

I followed her into the kitchen.

"Hana."

She busied herself with opening a cabinet. Nothing was inside.

She tried to close it like she hadn’t just opened an empty cabinet to avoid answering me.

"So," I said, leaning on the counter. "How’s Park Min?"

She froze.

She didn’t turn around.

Her hands trembled a little before she grabbed a glass to steady herself.

I waited. I didn’t rush her. I didn’t soften my voice. That wasn’t how I dealt with her. We were honest, even when it hurt.

Finally, she said, "He’s fine."

I rolled my eyes. "Hana."

"He’s really busy," she added quickly. "Work. stuff. Leadership events. You know how CEOs are."

"Hana."

She swallowed. "We’re... we’re still..."

"You’re not," I cut her off gently but firmly. "So stop lying. It’s just us."

The glass in her hand shook harder.

Then she whispered, "I am."

"No," I said. "You’re not. I know the truth."

She turned around finally. Her face was pale, but she tried to smile.

"What truth?" she asked, like I was mistaken.

"That he’s an Alpha now," I said, watching her reaction.

Her eyes dropped.

"And that he’s with someone else."

Her throat tightened. I could see it.

I walked closer. "Hana. I know about the omega."

She laughed once, too sharp. "Everyone knows. Gossip spreads."

"He’s living with him," I added.

Her breath hitched.

"And the omega is a man."

She blinked hard. "Yeah. I heard. It’s whatever."

"It’s not whatever to you."

She looked away again.

Her silence felt heavy in the room.

I sighed. "Why didn’t you tell me? I came back all excited to talk about Fan Xiao, and you’re here pretending your engagement is still alive."

"It... it was embarrassing," she finally whispered. "Everyone thinks I lost. That I wasn’t enough. That he... that he picked someone else over me. A man. An omega. And I..."

Her voice cracked.

She covered her mouth like she didn’t want to make a sound.

I stepped forward and hugged her.

She stood stiff for a second, then broke. Just quietly. No sobbing. No dramatic crying. Just shaking, gripping my shirt like she was drowning.

"I didn’t want you to think I was pathetic," she said into my shoulder.

"Don’t be stupid," I said, rubbing her back. "You’re not pathetic. He is."

She let out a shaky laugh. "You’re biased."

"Yes. Obviously."

I pulled back enough to see her face. "You didn’t do anything wrong. People fall out of love. Or change. Or become assholes. Whatever."

She wiped her nose. "I’m fine. Really."

"You’re not," I said. "But you will be."

She nodded a little.

We sat at her tiny table. She poured water for us with hands that still trembled a bit.

I drank mine slowly, watching her. She kept pretending to be okay, but every time I said "Park Min," her eyes flickered.

Finally, I said, "We should go see him."

She choked on air. "What?"

"Not today," I added. "Tomorrow."

"Why?"

"Closure," I said. "Also, I want to see what the omega looks like. For research."

She groaned. "Anning..."

"It’ll help you," I said. "You’re stuck. You’re pretending you’re fine because you don’t want to look weak. But seeing him might actually free you."

She stared at the table. "I don’t know if I can."

"You can," I said. "And I’ll be there. You don’t have to talk. You don’t have to say anything. Just see him."

Her eyes glistened again, but she didn’t cry.

She just nodded.

"Okay."

We both sat there in silence. Not awkward. Just heavy.

I took her hand.

"And for the record," I said. "You didn’t lose. People change, Hana. You didn’t do anything wrong."

She squeezed my hand.

"Thanks," she whispered.

"Obviously." I shrugged. "Also, tell me everything about how he looked last time. Was he taller? More annoying? Did he still have that stupid haircut?"

She let out a laugh that sounded real this time. "He cut it. And he looks... different."

"I’ll see for myself tomorrow," I said.

She rolled her eyes. "You’re insane."

"I’m loyal," I corrected. "There’s a difference."

We talked more after that. About New York. About work. About food. About stupid things that didn’t matter. Her laughter came easier by the end.

Then I said, "After we see him tomorrow, I’m going to Fan Xiao."

She smacked my arm. "You’re obsessed."

"Clearly," I said. "And I’m not letting someone else steal him."

Hana smiled. A real one.

"Good luck," she said softly. "He’ll probably need the luck more than you."