Seven Times I Came, Seven Times You Didn't

The next morning, the mountain fog hung thick over the village.

By the time Joseph came back, it was already noon. He found me and pulled out his phone. The screen displayed photos of many different elegant wedding dresses.

"You saw these on my phone before. I remember you said you liked them," he said excitedly. "Pick one. Once we go down the mountain, you'll wear it for our wedding."

I lifted my rough, chapped hand and gently brushed my finger across the screen.

The women of Pine Ridge spent their days working. Year after year, we wore dark, coarse clothes stained by sun, dirt, and labor.

Four years ago, Joseph had shown me photos from his best friend's wedding. That was the first time I had ever seen a white wedding dress, the first time I saw anything so pure and beautiful.

Back then, all I wanted was the chance to wear one someday and walk out of these mountains with him. Now, that chance was gone.

"It's not needed anymore," I said, shaking my head.

Joseph's grip tightened. "Are you still upset?"

"No," I answered, looking calmly at him. "Grandma already made my wedding dress."

The night before, Grandma had taken the satin cloth Arthur brought over and measured me for a wedding dress. After all, I was getting married soon.

Joseph smiled and casually swiped through the photos on his phone. "Sure. As long as you like it."

He went on talking about where we would hold the wedding, what kind of invitation cards we would design, and all the other little details.

I didn't hear much of it. It felt as if my ears were filled with water, and all I could hear was a dull ringing.

Then, he suddenly stood up with a faded smile. "The documentary's entering its final shoot. Just three more days of rushing to finish it, and I'll take you down the mountain."

He turned and walked away, never seeing the tears that had reddened my eyes. I watched his figure gradually disappear into the endless mountains.

Ignoring the pain in my feet, I crouched down and opened the wooden cabinet tucked against the wall. Inside were all the photographs we had taken together over the years.

He had written something on the back of each of them. I flipped through them one by one.

On the photo taken in the village, he had written, "I'll love Caroline Brown for the rest of my life."

On the one where we had watched the sunrise together, he had written, "Caroline's smile is even more breathtaking than the sunrise."

After a brief hesitation, I tossed them all into the trash. I sorted through everything piece by piece until only a single wooden hairpin remained in the box.

Four years ago, Joseph had placed it in my hand and promised he would take me out of these mountains one day. Something prickled my chest. I clutched the hairpin, slowly tightening my grip.

"I should give it back to him."

Limping on my injured foot, I made my way to the neighboring village. There, among fields of flowers and sunlit rocks, Gemma stood in a traditional Arin pleated skirt embroidered with bright patterns.

Silver ornaments adorned her hair, glittering beneath the sunlight. Meanwhile, I stood in the shadows, covered in dust and grime, gloomy as a rat hiding in a corner.

"Caroline? What are you doing here?"

Joseph looked genuinely surprised to see me. Just moments ago, he had been crouched on the ground, carefully applying medicine to Gemma's injured leg.

"Am I interrupting something?"

I stood off to the side, my throat so tight it felt as though something was lodged there.

He frowned. "You're making this sound weirder than it should be. All I'm doing is just treating her injury."

Then, without another glance at me—or at the wound on my leg—he lowered his head and gently lifted Gemma's leg again, carefully spreading the ointment over the bruised skin.

Suddenly, Gemma turned toward me and switched to fluent Arinese. She knew Joseph couldn't understand a word of it, so her tone immediately sharpened.

"What are you doing here?"

I met her gaze. "To give you two my blessings."

She sneered, her eyes full of mockery. "Playing the victim card, I see. I don't believe for a second that you'd let Joseph go. And do you seriously think he's going to leave the mountains with you?

"It's been four years. He was just bored and using you to pass the time while he was stuck here. He much prefers someone like me, radiant and confident, instead of a dull mountain lady like you who spends all day crossing ridges just to wait for him.

"Besides, you've already wasted all seven chances to leave. Your fate was sealed a long time ago."

My fists clenched. "I know. That's why I'm getting married to someone else."

I surmised she couldn't believe that I, the woman everyone in Pine Ridge called the devoted fiancee, would ever let go of Joseph. So, she put on a show and burst into tears.

With a dramatic sob, she switched back to the local language. "Caroline, I swear nothing is going on between Joseph and me! How could you say such horrible things about me?"

Joseph couldn't understand Arinese, yet without the slightest hesitation, he decided I was the one at fault and immediately defended Gemma.

"Caroline, there should be a limit to your jealousy! Gemma got hurt because of me. There has never been anything improper between us!"

I looked at him, then snapped the wooden hairpin in half before tossing the broken pieces onto the ground. My tongue pressed against the root of my mouth as I forced the words out.

"Don't worry. It won't happen again. We're over, Joseph."