Love's Labors Lost (Ch.3)
by Ring-chan

Nearing Phrey Veng City, Cambodia
In the late evening country side, a small rattling pickup truck clattered its way down the dusty country road, which really consisted of not much more than a few miles of a fairly flat dirt road and the occasionally protruding rock. On the back of the pickup, Ryu stretched again and repositioned himself to lean against one of the cargo crates.
Thank goodness he was able to hitchhike a ride. Hopefully at this rate he'll be able to get to a city with an airport soon.
He leaned back and stared at the night sky. There were no clouds that particular evening. No smog. No skyscrapers. Just the gorgeous glimmering stars all glowing in their respective positions.
One of the things he really cherished about being out in the countryside was the chance for stargazing at night.
Ryu quickly spotted the North Star, most prominent by brightness and position, then he found the Big Dipper. Then he blinked in surprise... Were his eyes playing tricks on him?
There in the sky, all the stars seemed to be forming the shape of a face... A face of a beautiful young woman... bright, enthusiastic eyes... impeccable beauty in every delicate feature...
"Chun Li...."
He was seeing her everywhere these few days.
"I guess this is the sign of a man in love." Ryu chuckled to himself.
He continued staring at the starry sky not evening noticing that they had entered the little rural town until the truck finally stopped.
After getting off, Ryu gave the driver another grateful thanks and then a farewell. He wandered through the dimly lit streets and proceed to look for a phone.
He needed to make a special call.
~~~~~~
The elevator door yawned open as the young couple returned from another night in town together. And hand in hand they approached their destination.
"Have fun, sweetie?" Jeff smiled as they stopped outside Chun Li's door.
"Yeah," Chun Li replied half-heartedly. She didn't exactly feel any better but the evening had served to take her mind off some issues she has been trying to deal with.
Jeff gazed down at her and Chun Li looked up.
For that moment, their eyes were locked on each others, each managing to catch a glimpse into the depths of the other's heart.
Jeff's fingers gently tilted Chun Li's chin up and then lowered his lips down to greet hers. His senses trying to take in everything that could be experienced... the soft, kissable sensation of her lips... the delicate scent of rose perfume that floated around her like an aura... In that instant he imagined his world melting and fusing with hers... no, she was his whole world now. They were together and that meant everything to him.
Chun Li slowly pulled away and ended the kiss. "Thanks for a great evening, Jeff."
"My pleasure as always," he answered smiling.
"Well, I have work tomorrow, so goodnight." Chun Li gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.
"Goodnight, Chun Li. I love you."
Chun Li felt her whole body go rigid as she heard those words, but determined to ignore the last part of Jeff's verbally expressed farewell, she smiled one last time. "Goodnight." Then entered her apartment and closed the door behind her.
Once inside, Chun Li leaned against the door and took a deep breath then slowly exhaled, trying to dispel the dizziness in her head. It wasn't exactly the first time that Jeff had said those three little words, neither was it the first time that she found herself unable to return such deep affections for him.
She didn't want to do this to him... but this relationship wasn't about love anymore... not true love. She's experienced true love and this... this wasn't it. Jeff just has a hopeless case of puppy love.
Maybe it was finally time for her to end this relationship... She can't keep living this lie.
There will always be only one man that she can love in that way...
Her thoughts were suddenly shattered by the ringing of the telephone. Having been jolted back to attention, Chun Li approached the phone and picked it up.

"Hello?"
"He... hi, Chun Li?"
The voice... the gentle yet strong and reassuring tone... Chun Li's eyes widened, her mind went blank with shock and she nearly lost her grip on the phone receiver.
She let out a hoarse, dry whisper, "Ryu..."
"Chun Li... I... I miss you..."
Chun Li found herself incapable of speech. Past feelings resurfaced, old wounds were opened, and memories from what seemed like another life flooded her mind. The pain was just so unbearable...
Suddenly she realized with surprise that her face was wet.
She was crying again.
"Chun Li, I just wanted to see if you got my letter. And I was also wandering if you'd be meeting me at the airport."
Silence.
Ryu heard a stifled noise that sounded suspiciously like a sob on the other end.
"Chun Li, I never wanted to hurt you... I hope you'll..."
Chun Li finally gathered up the courage inside her and rediscovered her voice. She swiftly, without a moment's hesitation, interrupted the man who had so ruthlessly broken her heart.
"Goodbye Ryu."
No sooner had she said that, she dropped the receiver back onto the phone hook.
On the other end, Ryu blinked in shock as the touch tone sound cut him off. He stared with his mouth agape at the phone... Did he hurt her so much when he left?

Chun Li stood staring at her phone after she hung up.
What has she just done? Wasn't this what she wanted? For that seemingly endless stretch of time after he left, wasn't this what she hoped and prayed and so desperately wished for? That Ryu would call and tell her that he wanted her back, that he missed her, that he needs her in his arms...
What has she done now?
Her legs suddenly felt so weak... Her knees buckled under her and she sank to the ground to sit on the soft, plush carpet.
What has she done?
Suddenly the phone rang again.
She quickly scrambled for it and picked it up.
"Hello? Ryu?"
"Hi Chun Li."
"Oh," there was no hiding the disappointment in her voice. It wasn't Ryu.
She took a deep breath to compose herself. "Hi Jeff. I... I was just kinda expecting someone else..."
"Oh, sorry Chun Li, but I have some great news," Jeff announced over the phone. "Guess what? I just got a call from my friend and he got a pair of tickets for us to the opening opera production of Rigaletto by the Imperial Performance Company."
"Rigaletto? Really?"
"Yeah, I remember you said that was your favorite Italian opera and I managed to get balcony seats."
"Awww, Jeff." Chun Li couldn't help smiling through her still wet and teary face. "That's very sweet of you."
"But of course I still need a charming, gorgeous lady to sit beside me and make all the other guys jealous... Are you free Wednesday night, Chun Li?"
"I guess not anymore, I have a date to the opera now it seems."
"Great, I'll see you then."
"Alright."
"I love ya, Chunny honey."
Chun Li managed a weak, "Good night, Jeff."

As she hung up the phone again, Chun Li remained sitting on the carpet. Her legs still feeling too weak to stand, her mind too dazed to co-ordinate her motions, and her heart too bewildered to control her emotions.
Her thoughts stubbornly drifted back to Ryu.
Ryu never enjoyed going to the operas and the few times she's dragged him in had resulted rather disastrously.
They never really understood each other completely, but that didn't stand in the way of their feelings for each other.
What were those feeling? He misses her... Does she miss him?
Chun Li suddenly turned her nose up at the thought.
Of course not. She's doing just fine without him. She's moved on and she's strong enough to start life anew. She doesn't miss him at all.
She's just thinking about him... a little bit...
"The letter!" She suddenly realized and she scrambled to the recycling basket, where upon after rummaging about a bit, she found the torn pieces of the envelope and the letter.
She heard her own heart pounding tumultuously in her chest as she carefully reassembled the torn letter piece by piece. Finally, she was able to make out all the words and all the sentences.


"Dearest Chun Li,
The only appropriate way I see to start this letter is to tell you just how much I have missed you. I never meant to hurt you so much when I left. I hope we can still restore some of those feelings between us.
I'll be returning to Hong Kong soon. If all goes according to my planned schedule, I should be arriving by plane on Wednesday evening. It would mean a lot to me if you would meet me at the airport.
I really look forward to seeing you again. More than you can possibly tell.
Love as always,
Ryu"


As Chun Li finished reading over the letter, she gathered up the pieces again then held them in her trembling, shaking palms.
Ryu's coming back? Wednesday evening?
She clutched the pieces of the letter to her heart.
Should she go meet him? Can there be a second chance for them?
But suddenly the realization hits her. Wednesday night... no, she'll be with Jeff...
Chun Li felt her heart being torn in two.
She considered the option of cancelling her date with Jeff to meet Ryu. But why did it seem so wrong? And what about Jeff?
Her mind whirled as she considered the possible ramifications of her decision.
Should she stay with Jeff, the man who loves her with such hopeless devotion or should she take her chances and give her heart to Ryu, the man who has already once broken it?
She sat on the carpetted floor, listening to the silence and tacit echoing of the emotions in her turbulent heart, then... she made her decision.
Wiping away the last of the teary dampness on her face, Chun Li stood up and reached for the phone. She needed to call Jeff and tell him that she can't make it to the opera.
But her hand stopped halfway in reaching for the phone.
No, Jeff loves her, wholly, entirely, and unconditionally.
She's happy with that.
Is she really?
What about her love? She knows it will always belong to one man and one man only.
Chun Li picked up the phone and started dialling.
7... 2... 4... 5... 8... 4...
She dialled the first 6 numbers and paused. She allowed her finger hovered over the 5 button, the last digit to Jeff's phone number.
Just as she thought she was going to press the button...
Suddenly, Chun Li furiously threw the phone receiver into the ground, and a loud, jarring CLANG rang through the room.
No, she just couldn't do it...
What was the matter with her?
Resting her head in her hands, Chun Li tried to recollect her jumbled thoughts, and suppress her accumulating tears. No matter what she did though, her mind kept returning to one manifest and all-encompassing question.
Would she rather love or be loved?
Chun Li was left to ponder the answer that question for the rest of her sleepless, restless, dreamless night.
~~~~~~
-----That's the end of this chapter peeps... I thought it would be fitting to end this chapter with this quote.
"To love someone is one thing, to be loved by someone is another. To be loved by the one you love is everything..."
Don't remember where I found that but I really liked it.