The grocery bags slipped from Mimi's hands as soon as she closed the apartment door. Plastic clinked and cracked, apples rolling across the floor, a bottle of soy sauce toppling over and leaking dark liquid onto the marble tiles. She didn't care. Couldn't care. Her hands were shaking, her heart beating so hard it made her chest ache.
She said I was just a puppy in pink bows.That I'm not enough for Kijo.
The words burned in her brain, each syllable echoing louder than the last. Mimi clutched at the edge of the kitchen counter, her knuckles white, the world swimming around her.
She was so tired of being sweet.So tired of pretending everything was okay.
A sob tore from her throat—sharp, jagged, unstoppable. She pressed her fists to her mouth, trying to muffle it, but the sound broke free anyway. Tears spilled hot down her cheeks, mixing with the sweat on her skin.
The air in the apartment felt heavy, suffocating. Every corner seemed to close in around her, walls that had once been warm now felt like a cage. She couldn't breathe.
Was it true? Was she just a placeholder?
She stumbled back, bumping into the fridge. Her reflection in the stainless steel door stopped her in her tracks—rosy cheeks, pink bow in her hair, soft robe hugging her body.
The perfect little housewife.
A bitter laugh bubbled out of her, choked and shaky. She looked at herself and hated how small she seemed.
No more.
She grabbed the bottle of soy sauce and threw it across the room. It hit the far wall with a loud crack, the glass shattering into a thousand dark pieces that dripped down the white paint like blood. Mimi didn't stop. She snatched up a wine glass from the counter and hurled it into the sink. The crash of broken glass was like a scream, echoing in the hollow apartment.
"Mimi?"
Kijo's voice. Calm. Soft.
Mimi whipped around, her chest heaving. Kijo stood in the doorway, briefcase in hand, her dark eyes widening at the sight of broken glass and groceries scattered like a battlefield.
"Mimi," she said again, slower this time. "What's going on?"
Mimi's fingers curled at her sides. Her nails bit into her palms. "What's going on?" she echoed, her voice a high, brittle laugh. "Oh, I don't know—maybe I'm just playing the part of your perfect little doll."
Kijo's jaw tightened. "Who told you that?"
"Your assistant," Mimi spat. The words tasted like venom. "She found me at the store. She told me everything. How you deserve someone better. Someone who doesn't just… just trail after you like a lovesick idiot."
Kijo's expression darkened. She set down her briefcase carefully, her movements controlled. "She had no right—"
"No right?!" Mimi's voice cracked. "What about you, Kijo? What about you and all the lies you've been feeding me with those sweet words and soft kisses?!"
Kijo took a step forward. "I haven't lied to you."
"Then tell me!" Mimi's voice rose to a shriek. "Tell me why she would say that! Why she would look at me like I'm nothing but a… a pretty toy you keep around!"
Kijo's lips parted, her breath catching. "Mimi, calm down—"
"Don't you dare tell me to calm down!" Mimi lunged at her, shoving Kijo's shoulders hard enough to make her stagger back. "I have done everything for you—everything! And you've let me think that was enough while she—while she—"
She couldn't finish. Her voice broke, her whole body shaking with sobs.
Kijo's eyes softened. "Mimi—"
Mimi slapped her. Hard. The sound cracked like thunder in the kitchen. Kijo's head turned with the force of it, her cheek reddening instantly.
The shock of it vibrated through Mimi's hand. Her chest heaved, and her breathing came in ragged gasps.
Kijo turned back slowly, her dark eyes glittering. She didn't raise her voice. She didn't flinch.
Instead, she stepped forward, her hands coming up to cradle Mimi's face.
"I'm sorry," Kijo said, her voice low and steady. "I'm sorry she said those things. I'm sorry you had to hear them. But I swear to you—you are the only one I want."
Mimi jerked her head away from Kijo's hands, tears streaming down her face. "How can I believe you?" she whispered. "How can I believe any of it when I feel like I'm just a… a stand-in for someone else?"
Kijo's breath caught. "You're not a stand-in. You're not a placeholder. You're my wife, Mimi. The only one I've ever wanted this much."
Mimi let out a broken sob. "Then why does it feel like I'm not enough for you?"
Kijo's shoulders dropped, and for the first time, she looked… lost. "Because I'm an idiot," she said hoarsely. "Because I let her linger in our lives too long. But I'm done with that, Mimi. She doesn't belong here—you do."
Mimi pressed her fists against her eyes. "She made me feel so small," she whispered. "Like I'm just… pink bows and dinner plates and sweet words that don't matter."
Kijo reached for her again, pulling her in close, one hand cupping the back of her neck. "You're everything that matters to me," she said fiercely. "And I will prove it to you every damn day if I have to."
Mimi's shoulders shook with sobs. "Then show me," she rasped, her voice trembling. "Show me you mean it."
Kijo's jaw tightened. She pulled Mimi flush against her, her forehead pressed to Mimi's.
"I will," she whispered. "I will spend every day showing you that you are mine."
Mimi's breath caught at the raw possessiveness in Kijo's voice. It sent a shiver down her spine even through the tears. She looked up, her lips trembling.
"Then make me believe it," she said, her voice breaking.
Kijo kissed her—hard, bruising, desperate. It wasn't sweet or soft. It was a promise, a plea, a fire that burned away the doubt. Mimi gasped into the kiss, her hands tangling in Kijo's hair, pulling her closer until there was no space left between them.
And when she pulled back, her eyes were fierce even through the tears. "I'm not your puppet," she said, her voice shaking but strong. "I'm not your toy. I'm your wife. And I won't let anyone make me feel less than that."
Kijo's breath came fast, her dark eyes blazing. "You're right," she said hoarsely. "And I will never let her—or anyone else—make you feel like you're not everything to me."
Mimi's chest heaved, her hands still tangled in Kijo's hair. "Then show me," she whispered again.
And Kijo did.