Beyond Boundaries

"I don't love you anymore."

This sound still lingers in my ears, like the last song syndrome. The only thing I was able to say at that moment was the word "Okay."

This isn't the first time I heard those words, but every time it hits different, it makes me feel numb and more indifferent than the first time these words are said.

And this is how our story started... as the other one ends...

"I LOVED HIM WITH ALL OF MY HEART. I GAVE HIM EVERYTHING I HAVE; THERE IS NOTHING MORE I CAN GIVE!" I blurted out of dismay while having coffee with my best friend, Kyle.

"Stop crying! You look so F*CK*ng terrible," he said.

Kyle is never comforting. He is not the type of friend you should count on when sugarcoating and making you feel better. Kyle is not that type of friend; I can never emphasize that enough. He is the one who says things straight to the point! Kyle will tell you what you should hear, whether you like it or not, and that is what I like about him! He is always genuine, he might not be kind, but he is always the sincere and honest friend you can rely on.

"You know, babe, here is all I can say, and you better listen because my time is so expensive, and you keep on wasting it! You do not deserve this! There are so many fishes in the sea. Stop your obsession over a F*CK*ng SHRIMP!" Kyle said in a tone that is calm but stern.

"But I love him! It is not something I chose or something I can easily control, as they say, Love is Blind," I retorted.

"You know what, I am done here! This is a waste of my precious life and valuable time! Go chase after pot of gold at the end of the elusive rainbow, the hell I care, "Kyle responded in a cold tone and is about to leave the coffee shop where we are.

"Where are you going?" I asked while grabbing his arms in an attempt to stop him from leaving. "You are supposed to console me and listen to my stories. That's what friends are for," I said in a firm tone.

"Friend? Friends listen to each other. We are not Friends!" Kyle returned as he storms out of the coffee shop.

I ran after him after I paid our order, this guy walks so fast! He is nowhere to be seen when I got out of the Coffee Shop, I tried to call and message him, but he is not responding to any of it.

I've decided to just go home and finish the novel I am writing; by the way, I work as a Writer on a web novel application, and not to brag, my work is always on the Top 10. I love to write about femme fatale characters who are strong and untamable, women who are good at everything they do and are loved by many men. Men who will die for them and who are willing to give everything they have even for the tiniest attention, the slightest sign of them being loved by the main character. I hope this is also true for me. Well, at most, I am good at everything I do. People call me intelligent and beautiful who seem to have the "Midas' Touch." I am a consistent honor student, and I also slay pageants; this is why most people will think that I am living an easy life. Well, at some aspects, yes, except for one -Love!

For some reason, I always end up falling in love with assholes! I mean, I do not even know why. I seldom have suitors; people say men get intimidated by me and my achievements, and I am not sure if that is true, but that is how things seem. I had my first real suitor in college; he is my first and only boyfriend with whom I have had an on-and-off relationship for five years now. He cheated on me, called me boring, ignored me throughout our relationship. Still, for some reason, I am tied to him just as an elephant is connected to the pole he was stuck into while growing up- I know I can get out of this abusive relationship, but it is easier said than done. I always end up either clinging to him or accepting him regardless of the situation. I know this is stupid, and I should be the one suffering, but I can't help it.

I think the Black Pink song Kill this Love before It kills me too, and I know Kyle is frustrated with me. He is always the one who picks me up when I fall. Whenever I need a drink or when I just need someone to talk to. He never comforts me the way my other friends do, but he is always accurate and on point. Sometimes, we need a friend who will not sugarcoat our stupidity and tell us upfront that we are messed up and that we deserve better. He is always there for me when I needed him. He is such a good friend, if he is not gay, I would have married him already, but he doesn't like girls. I would admit that I have this gut feeling that he likes me; however, that is RIDICULOUS, so I would just drive away that illusion and look at things from an objective point of view. Do you know what destroys friendships almost 100% of the time? When the line between friendship and romance is blurry, I do not want to lose this friendship; that is why I always look at things objectively, but let me tell you a secret, sometimes he makes my heart flutter.

"Hey! "I shouted when Kyle finally answered my call.

"What" He responded.

"I have been calling you the whole day! Why are you not answer my calls? What is wrong with you? I sh..." Kyle hung up the phone, and I was not able to finish my sentence.

I redialed his number, and it was out of reach. "What is wrong with this s*n of a bi*tch!" I said to myself while trying to find my car keys and about to drive to his place. I do not understand this behavior; he was always there for me. Yes! Often, he will find me annoying and weird, but he never shut me out like this. Even though he doesn't have nice things to say, he is always there to listen and talk with me, patiently waiting for me to sobber and bring me home drunk. I do not understand.

"katok" A Kakaotalk notification came in.

"Do not go out! I will not open my door. I do not want to see you today! You are annoying. "Kyle messaged me on the app.

"Wow! So, I am the one annoying now?!" I said while staring sternly at my phone.

"I can't take this anymore. I need to talk with Kyle and ask him what is wrong. I am the one who broke up with my boyfriend, but he is the one throwing tantrums at me! Wow!" I said annoyingly as I walk out of my house wearing a black hoodie and jogging pants and firmly clasping my car keys on my hands.

I was about to start my car parked outside my gate when I heard a familiar voice behind me.

"Hey! Didn't I tell you to not get out? "It was Kyle, holding a box of beer and Fried Chicken in his left hand.

"Yaa! What is wrong with you? "I shouted at him.

Silence, he just looked me blankly in the eye and winked.

I ran towards him and hugged him. I put my face on his chest and mumbled, "What is wrong with you?"

"Do not wrinkle my shirt. It's an LV, "he playfully said while playing tapping my head.

"The F*CK! Are you teasing me right now?" I retorted.

"Haha, it is a fact. Let's go inside; it is freezing here. It is not good for our skin" I look at Kyle with irritated eyes, but I smile. I grabbed the chicken in his hands and followed him inside.

This makes me happy. Talking with my best friend while laughing and annoying him.

"So, Let's get down to business; what is wrong with you today?" I asked Kyle with a sharp tone.

"I mean, you never shut me out; what is wrong?" I followed up since he did not answer my first question.

"It's just annoying, "he said in a calm tone while eating his chicken wings.

"What is annoying?" I asked while drinking my beer in between words.

"Your stupidity is starting to annoy me," he said in a calm yet serious tone while looking at me straight into the eyes.

"I mean, I do not understand the logic behind all these years. Are you not tired? Of how your relationship with that Shrimp is going? Girl, you deserve better than this, and that what annoys me," He continued.

I did not say anything and just continued drinking my beer. What is there to say anyway? That is on point. Somehow, I realize it after all these years. What am I doing? Even I get tired of all these charades and shenanigans, and I know I am near the point of no return.

I tried to salvage our relationship because it was my first date, my first kiss, my first everything! But right now, even these first, it feels nothing but a memory that needs to fade away. Instead of being in love and being happy, my first love felt like a cell, a holding cell that I cannot escape in, no matter how hard I try.

"Hey," Kyle said in a low tone,

"Huh?" I responded

"What were you thinking? Look, I think your phone is ringing; check who's calling," he said while pointing at my phone.

When I checked my phone, we both got dismayed. It is a familiar name that we both dreaded to see.

"자기야 (jagiya)"

"Wow, this jerk is something!" Kyle said in an annoyed tone. While I just stare blankly on my phone.

"Yaa! Don't tell me you will answer that?" he said in the same tone again.

"Huh?" I answered blankly.

"If you answer that call, I am telling you now, I will never talk to you again! I mean it, Angela!" Kyle said in an angry tone. I know he is serious; I mean, DEAD SERIOUS. But something inside of me is boiling. I feel that I need to answer this call. I think that I might be able to end this on a good note. Somehow, something inside of me, a little voice of courage, tells me to answer the call and stand on my ground. And there it goes; I pressed the answer button while looking at Kyle's eyes. His expression changed so fast, from confused to annoyed and then angry. He stormed the room so quickly that I was not able to run after him. He did not hear what I said on the phone.

"Hello," I answered the man on the other line.

"Babe, I'm sorry" Michael's voice sounded so sincere in my ears, I can hear his sobs.

"Huh?" I replied blankly. My mind seemed to stop working right after I heard his voice on the other line.

"I did not mean what I said, I still love you, I know you love me, do you still love me? "

He said on the other line.

I know I heard it clearly, but for some reason, I cannot understand. It is like a resounding bell that doesn't mean anything to me. I felt numb. I can't even describe what I am feeling now...

"Babe? Are you still there, "said Michael.

"Oh? Yes," I answered expressionlessly,

"Do you still love me?" He asked again since I did not answer him the first time,

"Yes," I said impassively,

"Are we good now?" He asked in a happier tone as it seems to me,

"No,"

I said sternly and hung up the phone, blocked the number. I threw the phone on the couch, stare at it blankly for some seconds, and somehow this felt good. It felt relieving! The handcuffs and chains that have been with me for all these years are is finally broken! I chucked for a good five minutes while my head is lying on the couch,

"Did you see that, Kyle? I did it!" I said while looking at the ceiling; when I heard no response, I lifted my head and tried to look around for him, and then I remembered that he stormed out of the room when I answered the phone.

I went out of the house and tried to look out for him outside the gate. I wanted to call him, but he is screening my calls, and he is not responding to my Kakaotalk Chats as well:

"Ya! Where are you? I did it! I broke up with him for good! "

"Hey! Where are you? Did you go home?"

"Oppa, why are you not responding to my chats and my calls! Do you want to die?!"

"I am going there now!"

I went back inside my house to get my car keys, when I am about to open my car door, somehow, I felt dizzy, everything is turning black, and there is a popping sound in my ears. Before I entirely lost consciousness, I saw a stranger approaching me, a black silhouette that I am not sure If I am familiar with.

"Are you her guardian?"

I was woken up by an unfamiliar voice. I tried to tilt my head a little and slowly open my eyes; I realized I was in a Hospital. I was confused for a moment, and I instantly tried to sit on the hospital bed where I was lying.

"Be careful,"

I heard a deep soft voice from my back; that voice, whoever he is, is trying to guide me into sitting up properly. I tried to look back and see the person behind me, but the nurse standing beside my bed called my attention.

"Hi! How are you feeling?" she said while doing these whole charades of things we all see on Korean Drama.

"I am feeling fine, I think. What happened?" I asked.

The person behind me finally revealed his face. He is a young man who looks like on his late twenties, with broad shoulders and fair skin. He seems decent enough even if he is just wearing a gray hoodie and jogger pants, it appears that he is jogging, either about to jog or is done jogging. I am not sure.

"I caught you just right on time before you lost consciousness in front of a car," he said while looking at me straight in the eye.

I was looking at him intentively because he seems to look familiar for some reason. Have you ever had that feeling that the person in front of you seems to look familiar, but you just can't point out where you saw them before? It is that kind of feeling.

"You look familiar. Have I met you before?" I asked. He just smiled. I am not even sure if it is a smile or smirk- I think it is something in-between.

"Please follow me," The nurse directed him to follow. "You need to fill out some paperwork for the patient," The nurse added.

I was looking at him from behind. I still do not fully understand why I am here and what has happened to me. I am just glad no worse thing happened. The man is coming back now from the nurse's station. I feel some sort of familiarity with him, but I am not sure where or when I saw him before.

"괜찮아요? ( gwenchanayo)" he said with a smile on his face.

"Yes, I cannot remember where I saw you before, but you do seem familiar," I responded while looking at him.

"That's disappointing," He whispered while look down, "Anyways, If you are already feeling better, the doctor said you can be discharged now; I think you will need to have a follow-up check-up soonest, you can have it scheduled on the desk," He all said this while looking at me in the eyes, why do I have this feeling that I somehow forget something.

"I understand. Thank you so much for being here tonight. I am feeling a little better. I think you can go now. I do not want to inconvenience you anymore," I said while smiling and looking at this stranger in front of me. I realized he is tall because looking at him like this makes my neck hurt, but I am sitting on the hospital bed, and he is quite near me. I think he is around 6 foot five inches, not sure exactly but around that height bracket.

He looked at his watch and said, "Anyways, I need to go now; it is already 2:00 AM, and I also have work tomorrow."

"Thank you very much for all your help today. I will repay you in the future, I promise," I said gaily.

He just laughs a bit and then said, "I will wait for that day,"

After he left, I tried to look for my phone, so I asked the nurse on the next bed about my belongings, they handed it out to me. I was about to call Kyle, but I didn't. I was thinking he might be sleeping or on night duty. Being a Surgeon is no easy task. So I just opened my phone on Facebook and watched some funny videos; I didn't notice that I dozed off after a while.

"Hey! Wake-up!"

I was woken up by a familiar voice. I slowly opened my eyes and noticed the recognizable figure wearing a lab coat with broad shoulders.

"Hey! Are you allowed to be rude to patients like this?" I murmured as a form of defiance to his rude way of waking me.

"Wake up now." He said in a stern voice while crossing his hands over his chest.

"What is wrong with you?" I annoyingly said while slowly trying to sit on my hospital bed.

He said, "Why are you here?"

"Ow, I am on vacation, I guess?" I answered sarcastically.

"Don't play cute to me. What are you doing here? Why did you not call me?" Kyle said in a serious tone; however, you can see the care in his eyes. He always has the weirdest way of showing he cares, but I got used to it already. Kyle is not a sweet talker; he is stern and straightforward; if you are the type of person who gets easily offended, you will not get along with him.

"I was about to call, howe.." Kyle cut me mid-sentence.

"about?" he said annoyingly.

"Yes, but It was late, so I thought.." He cut me mid-sentence again; this time, I am a bit annoyed.

"You thought?" he said while placing his hands on his ways.

"What a minute, will you let me talk or not? And why are you here anyway? Don't you have duty today?" I retorted.

"I am at work, can't you see I have your chart in here, and you, miss, is my annoying patient, so you better tell me, what happened before I rip your mouth," he said while showing me that he is holding my chart in his hands.

"Okay, I don't remember a lot. When I woke up, I am already here. I remembered I was just about to drive to your home because if you can REMEMBER, went AWOL on me," I told him while crossing my hands on my chest and raising my eyebrows, and looking at him through the corner of my eyes, tilting my face a little bit towards his. He is now sitting in front of me on the edge of my hospital bed. He pushed my head away using his index finger and looked away from me while saying, "You look horrible today," I just smirked and shrugged.

"Anyway, who is this punk who brought you here? Do you know him?" he continued.

"Who?" I said

"This James Seva, who brought you here last night, do you know him? I don't think you mentioned this name even once before," he questioned me.

"Well, I don't necessarily know him, but for some reason, he seems to be familiar. I don't even know that that is his name, haha," I said

Kyle's reaction changed drastically, and I was stunned when he almost shouted at me while saying, "Are you stupid? Why did you let a complete stranger bring you here?!"

"Hey! Why are you shouting at me? Are you really my friend? Are you are supposed to be happy because, after that incident, I am still safe and sound!" I retorted. "And I am actually thankful for that person because even if he is a stranger, he still brought me here to the hospital instead of bringing me somewhere else. I think he has a good heart, and he looks nice too. You should have seen him," I told him.

"Whatever, I will never understand your logic. I will have the nurse help you with anything you need; wait for me in the hospital lobby we will have lunch together. You understand?" Kyle said to me authoritatively.

"Okay-okay, do you work now? You are not being paid here to chat," I teased him while pointing to the door.

"I'll see you later. I am a busy person, as you can see, unlike someone I know," then he looked at me up and down, implying that I am that person. I snubbed him and pointed to the door again, saying, "go." He just smiled and went on his way.

After his rounds, just about lunchtime, Kyle drove me home from the hospital. We bought some take-out from his favorite fast food and eat lunch at my house. When we are almost done eating our hearty lunch, I asked him, "So why did you went AWOL last night? He just stared at me blankly; I think he was about to say something when my phone vibrated. There is an unlisted number calling me. I wonder who it is...