**Chapter 5: "The Distance Grows"**

The days turned into weeks, and the weeks turned into months. Chaewon was gone, and Minjoo was left to pick up the pieces of her shattered heart. She had never expected him to actually go through with it, to really let her go. But he had, with a selflessness that had left her breathless. As she walked through the empty hallways of her school, Minjoo couldn't help but feel a pang of regret. She had taken Chaewon for granted, assuming that he would always be there for her. But now, he was gone, and she was left to face the consequences of her own actions. Minjoo's relationships with her friends and family began to suffer as she struggled to come to terms with her emotions. Her parents, who had been pushing for her to marry Chaewon, were shocked and disappointed by her reaction. They had expected her to be relieved, or at least understanding, but instead she was withdrawn and distant. Her best friend, Ji Hyun, tried to be supportive, but even she couldn't understand why Minjoo was so devastated. "You're better off without him, Minjoo," Ji Hyun would say. "He's not good enough for you." But Minjoo knew that wasn't true. Chaewon was more than good enough for her. He was the one who had made her feel seen and heard, who had made her feel like she was home. As the months dragged on, Minjoo began to realize just how much she had taken Chaewon for granted. She had assumed that he would always be there, waiting for her to come around. But now, he was gone, and she was left to face the reality of her own feelings. She would see him in her dreams, his smile, his eyes, his gentle touch. And she would wake up, her heart aching, with a sense of loss that she couldn't shake. She began to wonder if she had made a mistake by letting him go. Had she been too blind to see what was right in front of her? Minjoo's relationship with Yujin began to fray as she struggled to reconcile her feelings. She had thought that she was in love with him, but now she wasn't so sure. She felt guilty for using him as a distraction from her feelings for Chaewon. She didn't know how to untangle her emotions, or how to move forward. As the distance between her and Chaewon grew, Minjoo felt like she was losing herself. She was no longer the confident, capable person she had once been. She was lost and uncertain, and she didn't know how to find her way back. The months turned into a blur of tears and regret, of what-ifs and maybes. Minjoo's heart was heavy with sorrow, and she didn't know how to lift the weight. She felt like she was drowning in her own emotions, and she didn't know how to keep her head above water. And then, just when she thought things couldn't get any worse, she heard that Chaewon was leaving for abroad to study. She felt like she had been punched in the gut, like all the air had been sucked out of her. She was losing him, really losing him this time, and she didn't know how to stop it. The thought of being apart from him, of not being able to see him or talk to him, was almost too much to bear. Minjoo felt like she was going to shatter into a million pieces, like she was going to lose herself completely. As she lay in bed that night, Minjoo couldn't help but wonder what the future held. Would she ever see Chaewon again? Would she ever get the chance to tell him how she really felt? Or would she be stuck in this limbo of regret and heartache forever?