Chapter 2
I turned and walked away.
As I stepped out of the airport, the early spring wind slipped down my collar, making me shiver.
My phone buzzed.
It was a message from Randy: [Class reunion tomorrow. Come.]
I stared at that message for a long time.
For six years, he'd never once asked me to join him at any event with his friends.
Now, he finally did.
Back then, I thought he was trying to make it up to me.
Now I get it.
He wanted to punish me.
"Olivia?"
Stanley's voice snapped me back to reality.
Everyone in the room was staring at me, waiting for me to say something.
Everyone's eyes said it all.
Curious, judgmental, downright shocked.
Not a single one was wishing us well.
Stanley asked, "How long have you two been together?"
I said, "Six years."
The room buzzed with whispers and surprise.
Trisha suddenly raised her voice.
"Six years? Wait, that goes all the way back to college, doesn't it?"
Back then, everyone thought something was going on between Lisa and Randy.
To everyone else, they were just one step away from becoming a real couple.
That was also when Lisa suddenly went abroad, and rumors swirled that someone was pulling strings behind the scenes.
Stanley stretched out his question, his gaze flickering between me and Lisa.
"So, was Lisa's trip abroad back then because of..."
He left the sentence hanging, but everyone caught the meaning.
Someone whispered, "No way, that's disgusting."
"I always said Lisa left out of nowhere back then..."
"So that's the real reason, huh."
Their voices were quiet, but every word felt like a needle, pricking me one after another.
No one bothered to ask what really happened, and nobody wanted to know anyway.
In their eyes, Lisa and Randy were a match made in heaven.
And me? I was the homewrecker, the girl who came between them.
I looked over at Randy.
He sat there, didn't speak up for me, and didn't even spare me a glance.
Suddenly, I remembered back when we were freshmen.
Back then, Lisa hadn't even transferred into our department yet, and Randy was the star of the class.
He was smart, good-looking, and loaded. Everyone was always hanging around him.
Meanwhile, I was just the girl nobody noticed, always sitting in the back row, never saying a word.
Everyone always assumed I was the one shamelessly chasing after Randy.
But that wasn't it.
Yeah, I liked Randy. But the truth was, he was the one who made the first move.
It was the winter of our junior year. Randy had been drinking, sitting alone on the steps behind the classroom building.
As I walked past, he suddenly reached out and grabbed my wrist.
He said, "Olivia, what took you so long to come?"
My mind went blank. "Come for what?" I asked.
"Come be my girlfriend," he said.
No flowers, no ceremony, and not even a formal confession.
But that night, when I got back to my dorm and lay in bed, my heart was pounding so hard that it felt like it might burst.
But later, I learned that was the same day Lisa told him she was going abroad.
Amid the mocking whispers, Trisha spoke up again, her tone dripping with sarcasm.
"Olivia, you must've had it rough all these years, huh? Randy's the campus heartthrob, but trust me, he's a real handful.
"Sticking it out for six years... That's some serious stubbornness.
"Honestly, if it were me, I couldn't do it. I'm not thick-skinned enough. If someone didn't want me, I'd have bailed ages ago."
The room went dead silent for a moment.
Then everyone cracked up, laughter echoing around the room.
Lisa finally spoke up, her voice soft and gentle.
"Come on, don't say that. If Olivia could stick with Randy, she must have some hidden charm we don't know about. Isn't that right, Randy?"
She turned to Randy as she said it.
Randy glanced at me, gave a little scoff, and raised his glass.
"Forget it, let's drink," he said.
He didn't answer, but that silence stung even worse than any reply, like a slap to the face, burning hot.
My phone buzzed. It was a message from my boss.
[Briella is short-staffed. Three-year overseas assignment. Are you really not going?]
Three days ago, I personally turned down the overseas assignment, because I couldn't bear to leave Randy.
Now, seeing this message felt like a boomerang coming back to stab me right in the wishful thinking.
I looked up.
In the private room, Stanley was pouring Randy a drink.
Lisa sat beside him, putting some food on his plate.
Randy lowered his head and ate it.
In six years, he had never once put food on my plate or poured me a drink in front of anyone.
Because he always had to keep up appearances.
Because he never wanted anyone to know we were together.
Yet now, with everyone watching, he didn't hesitate to eat the food Lisa served him.
I let out a bitter laugh and typed: [No, I'll go.]
And I hit send.
Then I set my phone down, grabbed the drink I'd been ignoring all night, and stood up.
"You're right," I said.