Long-distance flights are never exactly enjoyable. Especially when the main company you have is a vivid reel of regret playing over and over in your mind. Yui Ishida was living this exact nightmare while she flew back to Tokyo from Marbella, Spain. A mixture of dry airplane air, subpar in-flight meals, and a stubborn ache in her chest from the sting of her actions served as her unwilling companions. The heartache? That was a free bonus, courtesy of a certain man named Adam who didn't show up for their departure taxi.

During the entire journey, she had ample time to mull over the fascinating, yet exasperating, series of events that had unfolded back in Marbella. She replayed how harshly she had rejected Adam, overanalyzing every word, every inflection, every bewildered look in his eyes. Despite the relentless regret, Yui found a sort of comedic irony in it all. She was always the practical one, the level-headed decision-maker, yet there she was, torturing herself over a scenario where she had let her fears guide her actions. Yui Ishida, the ever-pragmatic businesswoman, caught in a romantic entanglement – it was like a poorly written rom-com.

With every passing time zone, Yui found herself fluctuating between resignation and the desperate hope that she could undo it all. It was almost as if her brain was hosting a tennis match with her thoughts. Back and forth they went – should've, could've, would've – each volley stronger than the last. Even the tiniest train of thought would lead her back to Adam's disappointed face, his charming grin erased by her words.

Finally, the captain announced their descent into Narita Airport, pulling Yui from her self-imposed torment.  And into a panic, because Aoki, her fiancé, was supposed to pick her up, and Aoki was about the last person on earth she wanted to have a face to face with at that very moment.

Thankfully, it was not Aoki’s dispassionate face that greeted her in the Arrival crowd, but her sweet assistant, Miss Minami Williams, always trust-worthy and dependable.

However, Mina's smile promptly took a nosedive when she noticed the drawn expression on Yui's face.

"Omg what happened! What did he do to you? Was it Mister Stroe?" Mina blurted out, her voice a strange mix of concern and slight excitement.

"No, it was me," Yui replied, her voice barely above a whisper as she melted into her best friend’s comforting embrace. "Can we just go to my place, order something in and have some wine? I need to talk to you."

Mina blinked, processing the words, then bobbed her head. "Oh, I have Moet waiting for us and Häagen-Dazs. I also ordered us poke bowls for one hour from now," she announced, as if reading off a to-do list, glancing at her watch. "But I thought we would be celebrating? Your father is really pleased with you."

Celebration was the furthest thing from Yui's mind. "I feel like digging a hole and hiding myself in it rather than celebrating," she admitted, her voice carrying a hint of desolation that seemed to mute the bustle around them.

"Oh..." was all her best friend could muster, wrapping her arms tighter around Yui. The remainder of the journey passed in silence, Mina choosing to give her friend the quiet support she seemed to need.

They found themselves back in Yui's apartment, nestled comfortably in central Tokyo. While Mina was popping the cork on the chilled wine, she ventured, "Talk now or after a few glasses?"

Before she could even pour, Yui grabbed the bottle, taking a generous swig straight from it, then offered it back, her eyes watery but defiant.

"He wanted more, he wanted to take me home to his mom and I dumped him heartlessly. I am… I am a heartless witch, Mina," she declared, throwing her hands in the air dramatically before reaching for the bottle again. "A witch I tell you!"

"Nooo! No, you are not a witch! But you dumped the wrong man for sure. You have to dump the good for nothing Aoki who can't even pick you up from the airport because he has some golf game or what was it this time?" Mina retorted, her tone full of underlying disapproval.

"Regardless, we are engaged. It’s like a contract. I cheated..  and I did not even feel guilty, not at all," Yui sighed, her confession hanging heavily in the air between them.

Then, almost as if compelled, she reached for her phone. "I mean, look at him… Just look at him," she commanded, displaying a picture of Adam on her screen before sighing again. The raw admiration in her eyes couldn't be concealed.

"Oh… when did you take this picture? What were you doing on that tall rock? Is it safe?" Mina queried; her curiosity piqued as she looked at the picture.

"Yesss, he was climbing it. And later on he climbed me," Yui stated matter-of-factly, her fingertips tracing the image on her screen before she downed another gulp of her wine.

Despite the casual nature of her statement, her body language betrayed her. Slumped on her light-colored couch, Yui cut a less-than-ladylike figure, but she couldn't have cared less about propriety at the moment.

"It was everything I missed, but could never have, so I allowed myself these days," Yui admitted, her voice but a soft whisper as she sunk further into the couch.

Her apartment, situated on the seventeenth floor of a building in central Tokyo, was spacious – quite the commodity in Japan, but she seemed indifferent to its luxury or to the way her voice echoed in the modern minimalistic space, as if mocking her.

Mina looked at her, her voice tinged with a mixture of concern and reproof, "Yeah, but, Yui, the thing is you weren't alone in this. You should have been sincere with him."

"I should have been," Yui echoed, the words barely escaping her lips, "But I wasn't and now he hates me."

"I… I'm sorry," Mina sighed, her heart aching for her friend, although her gaze suggested that she was yearning for more details. "But you'll never have to see him again… and no one can take away what you experienced."

"I guess I can delete these pictures… And my consent voice recording… And all my memories." Yui sounded as miserable as she looked.

"Why would you delete them? They're your memories; you can cherish them forever. I think they're precious."

"What's the point of keeping them if I'm never going to see him again?" Yui huffed, scrolling through her phone. The confusion on her face was evident as she stared at the screen.

"Why is my consent recording 57 minutes long?" She exclaimed, covering her mouth in realization, abruptly standing up from the couch. "My God, I never stopped it… Oh God, no!" Pressing play, her own voice echoed around the room – a giggly, amused tone as she granted her consent for intimacy with Adam. Then, a loud thud when the phone had apparently hit the floor and continued recording.

Mina's eyes widened, burning with curiosity, "Oh… wow… are you making those sounds? Is that his voice? God.. .I'd be mesmerized just by that voice! Oh my god, he growled! It's a growl like in the books, Yui..." she paused to listen, "What's he saying to you, that's not English?"

"That's Romanian… quick, Google translate!" Yui placed the phone down, pulling her hands away so they could hear it better. She covered her mouth with her hands and stared at the device in shock.

"My God... that really is me!"

Mina was intrigued, asking Yui to replay it. "Okay, okay, play it again. Google, translate from Romanian." Yui obeyed and Google provided the translation: "What, no more naggy remarks miss corporate? I’ll take good care of that stiff ass, give you better reasons to open your mouth."

"Oh my god, I can't believe this! The nerve," Yui voiced indignantly, though she was blushing. She sat back down on the couch, reaching for her glass. "He sounds great. Doesn't he sound great?"

Mina seemed to agree, "To tell you the truth, that's some respectful dirty talking right there, and I won't lie, it's incredibly hot. I mean, he was a bit mean, but hot sexy mean, not the typical toxic you like that dontcha kind of mean?"

"He was so hot... And respectful. Stupidly so," Yui grumbled, repeating herself. "He asked me three times for my consent because I was tipsy."

"What a man,” Mina sighed, hugging her wine glass to her chest. “And this… this man wanted to take you home to meet his family. And you refused and instead are going to dinner on Friday with Aoki."

"YES," Yui screamed in frustration, springing up from her spot. A few drops of wine splattered onto her couch. "And don’t you judge me, Miss Williams!" She pointed an accusatory finger at her before she fell to the ground and literally crawled under her coffee table. Surprisingly, she fit.