After the Breakup, His Efforts Were All In Vain

Daniel Brown was the person who had called me that day.

As expected, he called again today.

"Hey, Selena, Joshua is completely drunk and out of it. Can you come to the bar and pick him up?"

I furrowed my eyebrows and glanced at the boxes by the door.

"But I really have things to do."

"I'm begging you. It was understandable that you were busy with work the other day, but it's Saturday today. You still can't make time? I seriously doubt it. I've been at the bar for days, and my girlfriend is upset and breaking up with me..."

Daniel whined, and I interrupted him helplessly.

"Just book him a hotel. He hasn't been sleeping on the streets these days, has he? There must be somewhere for him to stay."

There was silence on the other end of the line, followed by the sound of glass shattering and shouting.

"Daniel, who told you to call her? I don't need her to pick me up."

Joshua was always like this—pretending to be confused even though he was clear-headed.

He used that as an excuse when Hailey called him away, when he left me behind.

Joshua, feeling guilty, was no longer angry and put on a sad expression.

He said, "But you're letting another woman pick up your drunk boyfriend.

"We've been apart for so long. Have you even called me once? Have you shown any concern for me? You weren't like this before."

"But you and Hailey are just friends.

"I used to be too sensitive, but I've changed. Isn't it better now that I can trust and understand you?" I said.

Joshua was stunned as if he couldn't understand my words.

I smiled and sighed softly.

"Why are you acting this way? Isn't this what you want?"

Joshua fell silent, his clenched fists relaxing and then tightening again.

Looking at the mess all over the place, I was disappointed and heartbroken.

I turned to leave, but Joshua stopped me.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

He hesitated, seemingly wanting to change the subject.

"There's a new restaurant downstairs. How about I take you there to try it?"

His tone was gentle, and he even smiled at me.

He was trying to brush off the argument lightly.

But a wave of helplessness washed over me.

Three years is neither long nor short.

I once truly, deeply loved him, loving with all my heart and conscience.

But she was not the same.

He took advantage of my love without even giving a perfunctory response.

Even if Hailey weren't in the picture, there would be others in the future.

We are doomed to have no future together.

But some things needed to be said face to face.

I was just about to nod when the sudden ringtone of Joshua's phone interrupted me.

It was Hailey's special ringtone, set after Joshua lost a dare at one of their company parties.

...

I had protested and argued with Joshua to change it.

But he thought I was making a big deal out of nothing.

He stubbornly kept it and was still using it now.

The name "Hailey" kept flashing on the phone.

Joshua glanced at it and frowned, looking a little impatient.

After hesitating for a while, he wanted to reject the call.

"Answer it," I said.

"No, let's have dinner. It's probably not a big deal."

I was surprised. This was the first time I had taken precedence over his close friend Hailey.

Soon, the second and third calls came in one after another.

Joshua's expression grew more serious as he kept glancing at the phone unconsciously.

I snatched his phone away and answered the call without batting an eyelid.

The reluctance Joshua showed when he took the phone and the way he anxiously dashed out the door were striking and ironic.

After running three steps out the door, he suddenly remembered I was there.

He stiffly turned around, and I slightly tilted my head to look directly at him.

"I... Hailey had a car accident. I want to go see her."