Chapter 3
The room went dead silent.
Everyone turned to look at me.
Randy also turned to look at me.
I said, "Randy's such a catch. " He deserves better.
"So, we're done."
I raised my glass, tipped my head back, and downed it in one go.
The liquor burned, making my eyes sting, but I didn't blink.
The room went silent for a moment.
Everyone's gaze locked onto Randy.
His head was bowed, glass still in his hand.
After a long pause, he gestured for the waiter, his voice laced with a frustration I couldn't make sense of.
"Waiter, bring a few more bottles. Put it on my tab," he said.
Stanley was the first to jump in. "Randy, that's classy."
"Yeah! Even after a breakup, we gotta drink. Come on."
The party picked right back up.
No one brought me up again.
It was like what I said was some random joke, nothing that mattered.
Randy started knocking back drinks.
He downed them one after another.
Lisa sat right next to him, pouring his drinks and sometimes leaning in to whisper something.
He'd turn his head to listen, a faint smile playing at his lips, then went right back to his glass.
I sat in the corner, taking it all in.
I watched him whisper to her, making her laugh at his words.
That effortless, private closeness, as no one else was around, was what real couples were like.
That was what it looked like when Randy loved someone.
It was never me.
The party dragged on until the early hours of the morning.
By the end, Randy was totally wasted, slumped over the table.
Trisha said, "Lisa, you should take Randy home."
Someone else chimed in, "Yeah, who else but Lisa? Makes the most sense."
Stanley suddenly turned to me, clearly trying to get a rise out of me.
"Olivia, you two broke up, so you're cool with it, right?"
Everyone turned to look at me.
I just smiled.
"It's fine. You know where he lives, right? The Sunrise Gardens.
I didn't mention the address of the apartment we shared. I just told them where Randy's own place was.
Then I picked up my purse and walked out.
Maybe it was the booze. That night, as soon as I got home, I drifted off almost instantly.
I didn't wake up until nearly noon the next day, and that's when I started packing.
Everywhere in the 1000-square-foot apartment bore the traces of my life with Randy.
His drone parts were still scattered across the coffee table, untouched.
On the TV stand, two photo frames sat side by side. One was a picture of us together in Nerilyn, the other was a secret shot I snapped of him reading, his profile lost in thought.
The mint I planted was there on the balcony.
The sticky notes I'd leave for him every day were still stuck on the fridge.
[I made porridge for breakfast. You have to eat it.]
[I'm working late tonight. Don't forget to close the windows before you go to bed.]
I tore down all the sticky notes and threw them away.
Then I opened up the closet and started packing my stuff.
I folded my clothes one by one and put them in the suitcase.
I gathered up my books and packed them into a cardboard box.
I was halfway through when I heard the door.
Randy came back.
He was still wearing the same shirt from yesterday, his hair a mess.
There was a scent on him I didn't recognize.
It was Lisa's. That chilly, floral perfume she always wore.
He froze when he saw the suitcases in the living room.
Then he asked, "Why didn't you bring me home last night?"
I stopped what I was doing and looked up at him.
"Did you forget? We broke up," I said, my voice steady.
Randy froze for a second.
Then he laughed, with that 'here you go again, acting up' kind of smile.
"Don't make a scene. You're upset because I didn't back you up at the reunion last night, right?" said Randy.
I looked at him and stayed silent.
He rubbed his brow, his tone softening. "That's why I always kept us a secret."
"What?" I asked.
"It's just..." he trailed off.
He seemed to be searching for the right words.
He said, "I knew they'd say all that about you. That you were chasing after me, that you were out of my league, that you were desperate and wouldn't take a hint.
"I didn't want you to hear those things. I was protecting you."
Protect.
What a pretty word.
That was exactly what a good boyfriend was supposed to say.
But if that was really the case...
I asked, "Then why did you tell everyone yesterday?"
He froze for a second.
"You knew exactly what they'd say about me, but you still went ahead and told everyone I was your girlfriend," I said.
"That's because..." he started.
I cut him off, "Because you wanted to punish me.
"Because I confronted you at the airport and embarrassed Lisa. So you decided to humiliate me in front of everyone."
Randy's face darkened.
He looked annoyed, maybe even a little unsettled.
He said, "Olivia, you're way too sensitive."
Sensitive.