Moana finally drank the poison.

She waited for her life to end in agony. She had even written a letter on a piece of paper addressed to Sean.

One minute.

Three minutes.

Five minutes.

Ten minutes.

Her heart was pounding wildly.

"Why hasn’t it taken effect yet?"

Moana sat on the floor of her dorm room for a long time. The empty glass was still clutched in her hand like an object that had lost its meaning. Her breath rose and fell irregularly, not because of the poison’s effects, but because her own thoughts were beginning to unravel.

She had gone that far, had chosen an end, but her body refused to cooperate. All that remained was the silence of that cramped room and the sounds of life from outside, continuing as if nothing had happened.

She stared at her own hands, then let out a small, silent laugh. Everything she had planned had crumbled even before it had truly begun.

It wasn’t just Sean who had rejected her; even death seemed to deem her unworthy. Death, too, was reluctant to cooperate.

Moana pulled her knees up to her chest. She bowed her head, then wept. It felt like a deep confusion.

"I can’t even end my own life..." she whispered softly, as if unable to believe the reality of it.

Outside of the room, the world kept moving. Cars passed by, people chatted, streetlights flickered. It all felt distant, like the lives of others untouched by her own ruin.

Moana slowly stood up, her steps unsteady, then stared at the small mirror on her bedroom wall. Her face looked the same, but her eyes were different. Something had shattered there—no longer just a broken heart, but a loss of control over herself.

"Sean! Damn it!"

CRASH.

Moana hurled the glass in her hand at the mirror in front of her. She knelt on the floor, then wept, wailing like someone in agony.

Yes! It hurt, a pain without blood. When she was at her lowest point, even death refused to be her companion.

Everything was just empty.

In her dorm room, Moana began pacing back and forth. Her mind kept circling around the same thought: why hadn’t the poison worked? She was certain it wasn’t her fault. She wasn’t stupid; she knew what she was doing. But reality defied even the simplest logic she held dear. That was what made her even more anxious.

The woman crawled around and searched for her phone, which she’d thrown carelessly earlier, and found it.

Her fingers paused for a moment before she unlocked the screen. No message from Sean. No reply. Nothing at all. Just the same empty space as before, only more painful because she was still hoping for something there. She threw the phone onto the bed, then sat down again, staring at the wall without really seeing it.

Moana started crying again. And in that state, she suddenly remembered her parents.

Sobbing, Moana picked up the phone she had thrown earlier.

"Yeah, Mom and Dad will definitely accept me even if the whole world rejects me!"

With trembling hands, Moana dialed her father’s number.

A moment later, a man picked up the phone on the other end.

"Hello."

"Hello, Dad! It’s me, Moana."

"You little bastard! How dare you call me? Why don’t you just die in the dumpster? Useless child!" Mr. Freddy cursed.

"Dad! Watch your mouth. I’m still your daughter—the one who used to be your walking ATM. You and Mom get to live the good life because of my money!" Moana snapped irritably.

"And now ..., you’re a bum after becoming Roberto’s whore? Do you think I don’t know anything about that stupid move of yours? You slut!"

"Dad! At least ... I’m still alive and I can still fix everything!"

"What did you say?" Mr. Freddy laughed. "What can you fix from all the chaos that you have caused yesterday, Moana?!"

"Dad! Let me come home now. Please ..., let me stay with you and Mommy. We can make new plans togethe."

Mr. Freddy laughed at his daughter’s plea. "Give us $1,000 if you want to come home. Just think of it as rent!"

"Dad! You’re really being so mean to me!"

"Moana...! Nothing in this world is free, sweetheart."

"Dad, I’ll give you 1,000 dollars if I succeed with my backup plan. I have some of Sean’s company secrets that can help us make a lot of money off him."

After hearing his daughter’s words, Mr. Freddy immediately changed his mind.

"Okay. Order an online taxi to our new address, now! I’ll send you the address via text."

"Dad! Why do you guys keep moving around?!"

"Stop complaining, Moana! You’re the one putting your parents in this predicament!"

"Dad! Aren’t you two that became the ones constantly putting me in a bind?"

"If you keep arguing like this, don’t even bother coming home!" Mr. Freddy screamed.

"Okay, okay, Dad. This time I’ll make a peace with you."

*******

Meanwhile, elsewhere, Sean stood behind the large glass window of his office. He gazed out at the city that never stopped moving. His hands were in his pants pockets. He looked calm, as if there were no storm brewing behind the scenes.

One of his subordinates stood behind him, reporting in a low voice that the poison in Moana’s room had been replaced before Moana arrived at the boarding house. Sean remained silent for a few seconds, then nodded slowly.

"Good," he said finally, his voice flat and devoid of any clear emotion.

His subordinate hesitated slightly, then asked, "What if she tries again, sir?"

Sean didn’t answer right away. He stared at his reflection in the glass, then at the city outside, filled with artificial light.

"If she dies now, she’s out of this story too soon. I want to see her suffer some more," he said softly. "I’m not done playing with her yet."

Those words didn’t sound like a threat, more like a cold, long-considered decision. To Sean, Moana was no longer someone he loved or hated completely. She had become part of an unfinished calculation. Moana was like a new toy.

"I’d already anticipated that foolish move of hers. I knew she’d definitely kill herself. The world had rejected her, and I’d cast her aside. Only the poison in her room remained. But Moana forgot that I can change anything in this world with just a snap of my fingers." Sean laughed.

***********

*

That night, Moana finally arrived at the new address that her father had sent to her. The ride-hailing taxi pulled up in front of a two-story rental house in a cramped suburban neighborhood. The paint on the walls was faded, the small fence was rusty, and the front yard was littered with empty beverage bottles that hadn’t even been cleaned up yet.

Moana got out slowly, carrying her bag. She stared at the house for a few seconds, feeling out of place. Back then, her family had lived in a big house with the garden lights on all night. Now, everything looked like a hideout for losers.

She knocked on the door.

There was no answer.

Moana let out a long sigh and tried the doorknob. It wasn’t locked.

As soon as the door opened, the smell of alcohol hit her nose.

Loud music blared from the living room. The house was dimly lit. On the sofa, her mother was laughing, half-drunk, holding a bottle of liquor. Meanwhile, Mr. Freddy was sprawled on the floor, his face flushed and his shirt buttons undone.

They didn’t even notice Moana had arrived.

"Dad..., Mom ...." Moana called softly.

Mrs. Freddy turned around first. "Oh, look who’s here." The middle-aged woman chuckled, narrowing her eyes. "Our little artist has finally come home."

Moana clenched her fists.

"I’m tired," she said briefly. "I just want to rest."

"Rest?" Mr. Freddy snorted derisively. "Do you think your life is still as easy as it used to be?"

Moana tried to hold back her emotions. She stepped inside, dragging her small suitcase past the bottles scattered on the floor.

"I’ve lost everything, Dad."

"And it’s all your own fault!" Mr. Freddy snapped suddenly. "If only you hadn’t been so stupid and kept Sean in line, we wouldn’t be living like this!"

Moana stared at her father in disbelief.

"You two always blame me!" her voice rose. "Ever since I was young, I’ve been forced to make money for this family! Daddy and Mommy enjoyed everything while I was still with Sean!"

Moana’s mother immediately stood up unsteadily. "Don’t talk to your parents like that!"

"Is that wrong?" Moana laughed bitterly. "You even asked me to pay rent just to come back to my own home!"

The room fell silent for a few seconds.

Mr. Freddy took a rough gulp of his drink then pointed at Moana with a sharp glare. "If you’re no longer useful, don’t expect us to stand up for you."

Those words hit harder than any insult from a stranger.

Moana finally gave up arguing. She carried her bag to a small room upstairs that was even smaller than her previous boarding house. The walls were damp, the bed was dusty, and the light flickered as if it were about to go out.

Moana sat down slowly on the edge of the bed. Then ..., she cried again. This time, it’s not because of Sean. But ..., because she was beginning to realize that she had never truly had a home.