delightful mistakes

1:

"Did you hear about Taehyung?"

Those words greeted her as she stepped out of the elevator. She wasn't sure if those words were directed at her or if she happened to walk by during someone's conversational office gossip.

It would not have mattered either way because she was not comprehending anything being told to her - that is if anyone had direction conversation her way. She sauntered past the cubicles and walked towards her office. Dawdling, with her shoulders, slumped over in the slightest of forms. Her eyes were inattentive, but her mind reeled with thoughts. The opposite of how she had gone for lunch. She once had a skip to her step, her smile dazzlingly, and her chin held high from the confidence she exuded.

Sooyoung was known for her confidence and hard work. She had the determination to get things done, and one of the main reasons she was offered the job as one of the managing editors. She worked for one of Korea's top fashion magazines. Her life's dream was to be part of something, to see her name in print. She was ambitious. She knew that. No one could get to where she was without ambition and tenacity.

None of that mattered at that moment.

One of her biggest, if not the biggest, heartbreak had occurred. Granted, her mind made the situation at hand grander than it was—a bump on the road.

Sooyoung made it to her desk, barely pushing the door to close as it stopped inches away, the smallest bit ajar. She let go of the purse she barely clung to and slumped on her desk, arms supporting her forehead, letting her tears freely fall.

How could he break up with her?

He broke up with her!

Confliction arose within her. Partly glad and partly not. Was it relief or grief?

The thing about Park Sooyoung was that she never backed down from a challenge. Many would call her headstrong and stubborn. There were facts to those words, but she didn't see it as a fault. Her stubbornness didn't allow her to settle. She never settled; she captained her ship. She decided her destiny, not someone else. Her biggest want in life was to continue down that road. To be successful and free to decide where she steered life.

Life—society—let her know that to be considered truly successful, she needed a life partner. She hated that. Hated others telling her what she needed. However, she felt lonely, and having companionship throughout life was a goal she wanted and chose for herself.

She thought she had found him in Kyujong. She had been with him since they interned at neighboring companies, their meet-cute being in the Café down the street. Their drinks had been mixed up in the most cliché of ways. But he had broken up with her. He had been offered a position in New York for three years. He asked her to come along, and she did not hesitate to stand her ground and say, no. He did not like her answer, saying they would talk and talk they did—that lunch she thought he would agree with a long-distance relationship because he would only be gone for three years. Instead, at the start of their lunch, he told her that he could not do long-distance and that he wanted to break up. She had seen her future with him. Bought her apartment with him in mind. She felt distraught—but it wasn't the break-up that necessarily had her crying. 

"You see, that's the problem with you, Sooyoung. You always want to be right. You always want your decisions to be valued. You don't meet anyone halfway. You're stubborn, and I don't think you'll ever find someone who would be willing to let you be in charge. You're beautiful, but you're too independent."

His words cut through her. It wasn't her fault that she didn't want others to hurt her or use her. It wasn't her fault she had a clear vision of what she wanted out of life and had no need for those who tried to change her course. His words were harsh—though true—they made it seem she would live the rest of her life alone.