Chapter 3

My boss gave me a pleased pat on the shoulder.

"That's what I like to hear. Never let go of your career, girl. I'm sure your boyfriend will get it," he said.

I bit my lip and stayed silent.

For the rest of the day, I threw myself into work. To my surprise, I didn't think about Chris at all, and I didn't keep checking my phone for his messages.

When I decided to sign up for the overseas program, all I cared about was whether I'd get in, not about being apart from Chris.

I guess, after Chris stood me up for the hundredth time yesterday, I was finally done with him.

To my surprise, right before I left work, I got a message from Chris.

Chris: [I'll pick you up after work, and we can grab dinner together. Consider it my apology for yesterday.]

I thought about it for a moment and agreed.

Today was the perfect chance to set things straight with Chris. Whether I ended up going abroad or not, it was clear we couldn't go on like this.

After work, I walked out and saw his familiar car parked outside. Without thinking, I opened the back door and slid into the back seat.

Chris frowned.

"Why aren't you sitting in the front?" he asked.

I kept quiet, my gaze falling on the woman's jacket draped over the passenger seat.

I recognized it. Violet had worn that jacket before.

Ever since Chris got his car, if Violet was around, she always took the passenger seat.

I used to complain about it, but Chris thought I was being unreasonable. To him, it was only a seat.

Violet had separation anxiety, and sitting closer to him made her feel better. Instead of seeing my side, he blamed me for not being more understanding.

After that, I stopped riding in his car. I didn't want to end up feeling awkward or left out.

Now, even when Violet wasn't around, her stuff was still there, making me feel like an outsider.

If this had happened before, it would've really bothered me.

But now, I didn't care anymore.

Chris looked a bit awkward when he noticed the jacket and reached to put it away.

"I gave Violet a ride home yesterday, and she left it in the car," he said.

I nodded to show I understood, but made no move to switch seats.

Chris looked back at me, hesitated as if he wanted to say something. But in the end, he started the car without a word.

On the way, Chris kept talking to me, trying to smooth things over. I knew this was his usual way of making peace.

From him backing down this morning to now trying to start a conversation, it was rare for him to keep it up for a whole day.

Normally, if Chris tried to make peace and I didn't respond, he'd get mad and expect me to be the one to smooth things over.

But today, all I could think about was whether I'd get the chance to go abroad for further studies. I gave him half-hearted replies, barely paying attention.

When we finally arrived, I realized we were at an observatory.

Chris grabbed my hand, practically bouncing with excitement.

Chris said, "I heard there's a meteor shower tonight, and this is the best place to see it. When I was little, Violet and I—"

Chris paused for a moment, glanced at my face, and when he saw I was completely expressionless, he finally relaxed.

He said, "About yesterday, that was my fault. I'm sorry. Your birthday's next week, so I got you something early. Hope you like it."

Then he took out a box and gave it to me.

I opened it and saw a watch inside.

I stared at the watch and couldn't help but laugh.

"Chris, my birthday was half a month ago," I said.

I didn't need a gift that's this late. And I didn't need a man whose heart was with someone else.

Chris was caught off guard, realizing he'd messed up my birthday, his face flustered.

"Phoebe, I've been so busy lately, I must've gotten the date wrong. Why didn't you remind me?" he said.

I couldn't help but find the way he tried to blame me absolutely ridiculous.

Two weeks ago, I made a reservation at a restaurant so we could celebrate my birthday together.

Chris told me that morning he'd be there, so I figured he remembered it was my birthday.

I sat there waiting from six until nine, but he never showed up.

When I finally called to ask where he was, he said Violet had gotten hurt, and he was at the hospital with her.

Then Violet shared it on her feed.

It was just a little scrape, barely broke the skin.

But Violet made it sound like it was such a massive wound. If she'd waited a bit longer, it would've healed by itself.

When Chris finally got home, I was sitting on the couch waiting for him. I casually asked if he knew what day it was.

Seeing the confusion on his face, it all felt pointless. Without another word, I walked off to my room.

After all this time, he still hadn't remembered my birthday.

I took a deep breath and was about to say we should break up. Then, Chris's phone suddenly rang.