Chapter 3

Back then, I tried to convince myself that Andrew had saved her years ago, so she was just repaying a debt.

But after Andrew was diagnosed with a brain tumor, she actually went so far as to agree to have his baby.

She pretended to care what I thought, but behind my back, she'd already gone ahead with IVF without telling me.

That was when everything became clear.

Anna and I were done.

It didn't matter if it'd been twelve years. When it was over, I had to walk away.

I didn't tell them the real reason. I just said I was heading off to a research institute overseas and wouldn't be reachable for a long time.

To make up for everyone coming all that way for nothing, I drank with them until 1AM, then headed home.

When I got home, Anna had just walked in.

She smelled the alcohol on me, wrinkled her nose, took two steps back, and covered her nose with one hand.

"Stay away from me. That smell is disgusting," she said.

I noticed her other hand instinctively came to rest on her belly.

She did it so naturally, like she didn't even think about it.

It was obvious she never planned to hide it from me.

If she wasn't going to mention it, I wasn't about to ask.

I didn't say a word, just turned and went to take a shower.

When I came out of the shower, Anna was curled up on the couch, typing on her phone, wearing that smile she only had for Andrew.

I glanced at her and was about to head to the bedroom.

"Hey, I need to tell you something," Anna said, stopping me.

The last time I heard those words was a month ago, when she told me she wanted to have Andrew's baby. We spent the next month fighting about it.

Now that she was already pregnant, what else could she possibly have to say?

"No need to take the engagement photos tomorrow," she said flatly.

I glanced at the calendar on the desk. Next to tomorrow's date, I'd scribbled "engagement photos."

Not that it mattered—I wasn't planning on going through with the wedding anyway.

If she hadn't said it, I would've just found some excuse to cancel myself.

"Alright, I'll let the photographer know," I said.

Anna froze for a second, totally caught off guard.

She hadn't expected me to agree just like that.

After all, I'd spent thousands of dollars to lock in this photographer's schedule, and spent over two months coordinating everything to make sure it would turn out perfect.

But I didn't bother to say anything else.

She looked at me, her face a mix of emotions.

"We don't have to cancel everything," she said.

"Andrew says he probably won't ever get married, so he wants to take a set of engagement photos with me, just to fulfill a wish.

"Let Andrew do the shoot with me tomorrow. We'll do ours another time," she said.

She said all this in such a flat, matter-of-fact tone, like she was just talking about dinner plans.

It was exactly like a month ago, when she just told me out of the blue she was going to have Andrew's baby through IVF.

She pretended to ask for my input, but every word made it clear: she'd already decided, and was just giving me a heads-up.

I kept my head down, making sure she couldn't see my expression.

Another time?

She had no clue I only had eighteen days left in this city.

There was no future for us anymore.

I just muttered "Okay," and walked into the bedroom.

Since the wedding was off, Anna could take engagement photos with whoever she wanted. It had nothing to do with me.

Anna stared at the closed door. Something just didn't feel right to her.

I was so quiet, didn't ask a thing. She never even got to use any of the explanations she'd rehearsed.

But just then, Andrew called, and she instantly forgot about her unease, heading straight for the balcony to answer.

The next morning, when I woke up, Anna was putting on her shoes, getting ready to head out.

As she slipped on her shoes, she tossed out a line without even looking back.

"After the engagement photos, I'm taking Andrew on a trip. He's always wanted to go to Silverlake, so I'm making the trip with him," she said.

"As for the wedding, just handle it however you want. I don't have time to help with the arrangements, so do whatever you think is best. No need to ask me," she added.

I took a bite of my bread, chewed a couple of times, and swallowed.

"Alright," I said.

Simple was best.

There'd be no wedding photos, no guests, no emcee.

Not even the groom would show up.

Anna glanced over and saw me just quietly eating my breakfast. After a pause, she tossed out, "After the wedding, let's go to Switzerland for our honeymoon. Didn't you always want to go there?"

If this had been before, and Anna had actually brought up a honeymoon, I would've started googling flights and hotels on the spot.

I'd suggested traveling together so many times before, but she always shot me down, saying she didn't like it and that it was too much trouble.

I just kept chewing my bread, didn't even bother to respond.

Anna gave me a surprised look, like she had something else to say, but her phone started ringing.

She glanced down at the caller ID, and her whole face instantly softened.

"Andrew, I'm on my way. I'll be there in fifteen minutes," she said.

She hung up, grabbed her bag, and left.

The door closed softly behind her.

She never said goodbye to me.

She was never this eager to head out with me, not once.