“I do not regret what I’ve done.”

Those words kept ringing in her mind.

Those words kept pounding her soft heart.

Those words betrayed the trust she once had.

It has been 5 years since she heard that chilling statement. Even on the other side of the world, its echoes continued to ring, louder at times. It was tantamount to hearing from a person right in front of you. On starry nights when the gentle breeze flows alongside her hair, it carries the sounds of an inescapable past. It seems more vociferous compared to the morning.

Maybe it can finally go away, or it can be muted for the last time.

Upon returning to the States for a well-deserved vacation, the scenery appeared distinct yet nostalgic. The good old traffic congestion, the many places she visited were still intact, and new buildings were being constructed. The veil of memories soon controlled her mind and replayed clips of the old times. She was most exuberant to eat some good local food. Not only that but also meeting with her old friends again. How she yearned to convene with them after being away for so long. Her calendar had no gaps during her vacation stint.

But there was one place she needed to visit first. No one else was aware of this. She intended to finish this by herself.

Some things never change.

She immediately revved up the black Infinity car that her father gave her and was en route to her destination.

No music. No radio. Only dead silence.

After a protracted drive, she made her way to the prison facility just far out from any civilization. A dull, desolate building filled with bored guards patrolling the area. Any person who was to see this can tell no one wanted to be there. Not surprising since only employees and convicted people were there.

She took a long glance while standing untroubled. Her stoic face masked the apprehension in her mind. Nervousness and remorsefulness swirled around her head. Her heart pounded against her body trying to prevent her from making that first step. It was not too late to turn back. Maybe it was not a good idea to be here. A quick peek at her phone to see if any notifications pop up. Only one. Her appointment.

“I’m here to visit…” the receptionist located the prisoner’s name and went through the usual screening process before allowing the visitor to enter deeper into the facility.

“Right this way.”

She was taken to a single room with two desks intertwined with each other. In the middle, there was a large plexiglass separating one side from the other. The room was structured so a visitor and an inmate could not physically contact each other. Only small semi-circle holes right in the midsection of the glass can be seen. The woman stood motionless.

Waiting…

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Outside of the visiting room, a hall of repetitive cells consisting of a stiff bed, metal toilet, and a small overhead opening. A ray of light could be shone through the window. The space in each cell was so compact that moving freely was problematic. Each day you can hear agonizing screams and there was nothing they could do.

A security guard walked down until he stood in front of cell number 385.

“Get up! You have a visitor.”

The prisoner looked at the guard with their right eye burrowed. Their eyes widened slightly before slowly standing up from the floor and walking towards the bars. The inmate extended their hands, grabbed the bars, and kept a distance from the guard. Once cuffed, the prisoner was escorted to the visiting room.

“Who’s visiting me at this time?” The convicted inmate monotonously spoke before entering the door. “No one’s visited me in 5 years. Who would even show up?“

There the convict’s eyes met with that familiar face again.

“…you.”

A silent tone stills the area, neither wanting to move closer to the desks.

“You’re…here?”

A mere soft sigh was heard from the woman. Her lips slowly crept down on her warm face. The background surrounding her vision blurred and the only thing that was sharply focused was the person in front of her. She made the first little step and made it to her chair before calmly sitting down and placing her purse on the armchair. The prisoner then followed suit.

They quietly gazed at each other for a brief stint.

The convict’s unwavering face slightly became softer, “This is the second time someone visited me in 5 years. So… you came back huh?”

“I did,” was her initial response. “I figured I spent some time here on my vacay.”

“You decided to spend your time with me?” with a slight smirk on the prisoner’s face. “I must say I’m flattered.”

She slowly nodded thinking a spoken response would have been awkward.

The prisoner chuckled and shook their head in amusement. “So… how’s Korea treating you?”

“It’s been treating me well,” the woman loosened her shoulders. “We made some great improvements on our app and have gotten lots of success. So many people leave positive reviews about how much it helped them understand their loved ones better. Now I am on a nice little break so I could use my legs after being a couch potato for so long.”

Their conversation felt just like how it was before, so calming and peaceful. No surprise that the prisoner had to know life updates from her.

But now the stage was set for her.

She had to know again. Another reassurance to completely close that page that was long overdue.

“Hey,” the woman addressed the prisoner’s name before her face slowly turned somber. “Can I ask you something?”

“I probably know what you’re going to ask but ask away.”

“I just need to know why… Why did you do it?” Her face was not hiding the vulnerable pain shown in her eyes.

The prisoner looked down for what felt like forever to her. The silence was making her heart palpitate faster while her expression remained unchanged. Her eyes were completely focused on his facial expression.

He finally made contact with her eyes.

“I’m pretty sure I already answered that before, or better yet you already know that answer.”

She closed her eyes and sighed with melancholy knowing that was confirmation of what she probably already suspected. Was she a fool for asking that question?

“Just why was I here then? Why did I come all the way to meet you?”

“You had a reason, didn’t you? You always do these things for a reason. Doesn’t matter how big or small. That hasn’t changed about you.”

“I guess I did…” she mindlessly admitted, shrugging her shoulders. “I guess it’s because I wanted to recall our time 5 years ago…when that happened.”

The prisoner said nothing, only a faint smile detected on his expression. His eyes zoned out for a bit reminiscing the memories made there.

“Seeing how you are here, are you… okay with this?” The woman’s question brought the prisoner back to reality. “Are you really fine being here?”

“Nothing has changed to make me think so… I do not regret what I’ve done.”