After picking up her suitcase from the conveyor belt, Nina quickly passed through the newly automated passport check booths at immigration, and headed toward the airport exit. Aunt Luana had messaged her, saying she was having coffee at the only café, and Nina made her way there. She spotted her immediately upon approaching and couldn't help but smile at the sight of her beloved, eccentric aunt.

With a nose piercing and dog paw tattoos on her neck, Luana was definitely not your typical forty-five-year-old in their small coastal town. She was smoking a cigar on the café's terrace, and just as Nina noticed her, she turned and waved cheerfully. Nina quickened her pace despite her heavy suitcases.

Luana grabbed her in a strong hug and tousled her hair. Nina had missed this familial closeness and returned the hug with relief, inhaling her aunt's perfume.

"Is that Gucci's Bloom?"

"The one and only, darling. Finally home after what, six months? Want some coffee?"

"No, if it's ok with you let's hit the road. I'm dying for a shower and a home-cooked meal," Nina said, reaching for a glass of water that stood untouched on the table next to Luana's coffee cup stained with red lipstick.

"Agreed. I made your favorite dish—parmigiana!"

"I love you," Nina said, handing one of her backpacks to Luana's outstretched hand.

She smiled, dropped a few coins on the table and led the way. "Welcome back, darling. It's so good to see you."

The October day was fresh, and Nina breathed in the crisp breeze with relief. As much as she loved sunny weather, she realized she had missed the cold and her cozy hoodies.

She laughed at her aunt's new car, a tiny black sports Smart with two seats.

"Hmm, is the trunk big enough for my suitcase?" she asked as the car's lights blinked in response to Luana pressing the key fob.

"If not, we'll strap them to the rear bumper. They have wheels, don't they?" Nina felt her tension ease. Somehow, in the presence of her dad's sister and her kind, quick humor, coupled with the confidence she always admired, she felt that maybe things would turn out okay.

After half an hour of driving through quaint roads, Luana turned the car into the driveway in front of a two story stone house with mint-green wooden shutters. Nina's grandmother lived there until she passed away five years ago. Luana had moved into the nearly derelict house and slowly brought it back to life over the years. Nina admired the flowers growing in the middle of the lawn and noticed a newly planted row of pine trees.

"Wow, every time I come here, the place looks more heavenly."

Luana smiled. "Thank you, dear, and from now on, since the upstairs is finally finished, you can come whenever you want and stay as long as you like," she said, opening the trunk.

"Seriously?" That sounded too good to be true. She wouldn't be forced to go back to her mom and sister's place?

"Of course. I'm sorry I couldn't offer the choice to you sooner," Luana said, locking the car with a beep.

They walked toward the dark green door flanked by gray clay pots with lavender plants shaped into small trees.

"Thank you. I think I'll take you up on that offer." Nina rarely talked openly with Luana about her mom and sister, but she knew her aunt had some idea of how things were at home. Before she left for Asia, her aunt had invited her to dinner, the first time they had talked alone since her father died. Nina couldn't fully open up about her reasons for leaving, but Luana had handed her an envelope containing a nice cash amount and said she thought it was an excellent idea for Nina to travel and see the world.

"Traveling is a good way to discover more about ourselves. But I do hope you know you always have a place to return to when you need a touch of the familiar," she had told her. The house renovations were still in full swing back then, but both hoped Nina would be able to stay with her upon her return.

"Feel free to take a shower; I'll help you take the suitcases upstairs to your room," Luana suggested. "Or do you want to eat first? You must be starving."

Nina headed up the wooden stairs to the upper floor of the house. "Shower first, but a quick one; I am very hungry."

"Alright, I'll open a bottle of Cabernet for us."

Nina entered the room Luana had prepared for her and smiled as she dropped her backpack onto the white armchair next to the open window. The room was dominated by a large bed covered with a black-and-white comforter. There was an empty bookshelf in the corner. On the other side of the window sat a small white desk and Nina gratefully noted that she would be able to work there while preparing for her court case.

She put her phone on the charger. At some point, she would call Bo, but she didn't have the energy for it right now. She took clean clothes out of her suitcase and headed to the renovated bathroom.

Small succulents lined the windowsill, and a dark green shag rug covered the floor. The light gray tiles contrasted with the black-framed glass enclosing the walk-in shower. Nina liked her aunt's house more and more.

Her stomach growled, so she hurried with the shower, although the warm, clean water felt wonderful, and she was getting sleepy. Once dressed, she went downstairs to the kitchen and smelled the air just as Luana turned from the stove toward her.

"You're quick. Give me a few more minutes to finish the salad. You can set the table in the meantime." Nina felt a slight awkwardness at sharing the domestic space with her aunt, but as they sat down to steaming bowls of food, that feeling quickly dissipated. Luana filled their glasses and raised one toward Nina.

"To you. May you be content and fulfilled, wherever you are in the world," she said meaningfully.

"Thank you, Luana. Really. For dinner, and the roof over my head, and ... well, everything."

"Nina dear," her aunt's eyes were shining. "There's no need to thank me. Besides, this house is as much yours as it is mine." Technically, this wasn't correct, as Luana had paid off Nina's father when their mother died. "Now, dig in!"

Dinner passed in light-hearted chatter about Luana's hobbies. Nina felt a relief at focusing on something unrelated to her own life, which seemed overwhelmingly complicated at the moment. She knew tougher conversations awaited, but she was grateful Luana hadn't bombarded her with family issues right after she landed.

"By the way, speaking of crushes," Luana said as she finished the story about her pottery class instructor," is there anyone special in your life I should know about?"

Nina's hand jerked toward her wine glass. She had never talked about private matters with her aunt before. But after hearing about the sexy ceramicist, she felt it was only fair to share a bit of her romantic life too.

"There's this guy, yeah," she admitted, thinking of Bo. She couldn't believe how much she missed him already.

"I'm listening," Luana refilled their glasses and settled back in her chair.

"Well, he's an artist. And he owns a tattoo parlor business," Nina shared a few details about how she met Bo and found herself praising him. Luana listened with interest and encouraged her to continue with timely questions.

When Nina fell silent, she nodded and simply said, "Be careful not to put him on a pedestal, Nina. Your father used to do that as well. He fell in love easily and never felt he was good enough for the women he dated. The truth was – they weren't worthy of him. Luckily, he usually realized it quickly and his disappointment was the only downside. Only with your mom did he realize it too late."

Nina was surprised by this sudden admission. She had rarely thought about her father's life in the time before he met her mother. She would have loved to learn more about him, but soon realized she was barely able to keep her eyes open. She offered to help with the cleaning up, but after she nearly dropped a plate, Luana made her go to bed.

Once under the sheets, she felt jet lagged and unable to fall asleep despite being crushingly tired. She picked up her phone and looked at Bo's last message.

Safe travels! And good luck at the hearing.

Let me know if you need moral support.

It didn't exactly sound like he wanted to maintain regular contact in the meantime. Nina didn't like the way they parted. Between business meetings with Chompoo and Sombat, packing, and dealing with the apartment situation, there wasn't much time left for romance. She wondered what he was doing at that moment on the other side of the world and whether he was thinking about her at all.

After spending the night at his place, they only managed to meet once. It was a brief and bittersweet encounter, overshadowed by her impending departure. Bo wanted to take her for a ride, to get her mind off work, but only managed to persuade her to go to dinner. She told him a bit about her family and why she needed to leave so urgently. She wanted to say more but without knowing when and if she would be able to come back, it didn't make too much sense to get into the nitty gritty. Bo listened with concentration and seemed to be trying to think of solutions for her problems but before he could offer any advice she managed to change the subject.

When he dropped her off they spent a while saying goodbye in front of her building. The street was empty and the night was dry and warm. Every once in a while someone would exit the building to get food delivery, and they would wait for them to leave again before resuming their conversation. She got ready to leave multiple times, but at the last moment he would think of another thing to ask her. In the end she decided to be honest with him.

"Look, I don't want this to be the way we end things. But I can't ask you to wait for me. The truth is I have no idea when I'll be able to come back. My family situation is complicated and weird, and I have very little control over it. I like you a lot, and I really enjoyed getting to know you," she said feeling flustered and unable to express her real feelings. She felt like she just blurted out a bunch of cliches, but standing in front of her building for as long had started to become torture. There was nothing either of them could do to change the situation.

"I know I'm only postponing the inevitable," he said, approaching her and taking her in his arms. "But I just can't seem to let you go. Not now," he paused, breathing in deeply. "There must be something I can do though. There's always a choice to be made, I just haven't figured it out yet."

She squeezed him with all her strength.

"I need to go. We'll stay in touch. Maybe we need to sleep on it a bit, I need time to deal with things back home anyway. If only you lived there as well, it would make things easier. Curse you, destiny, with your strange ways!" she said and tried to laugh.

Bo put two fingers underneath her chin and made her look up at him. "I will find a way," he said with conviction, staring into her eyes.

In the high-rise towering behind him, Nina saw another light go out. She closed her eyes when he kissed her and wished for a hundredth time she didn't have to go.

But she needed to face reality as it was, not as she wished it to be.