My Ex's Greatest Regret

Natasha didn't come home that night.

The next morning, I got a friend request from an unfamiliar account.

When I opened the profile, I saw Vince's calm, polite-looking face in the avatar.

We barely knew each other. All I really knew was that he was Natasha's close male friend, nothing more. I had no idea why he wanted to add me, but for some reason, I still accepted the request.

The moment I did, he didn't bother with any greetings. He sent a photo.

It had clearly been taken in a hotel room.

Natasha was asleep, leaning against Vince's arm.

Vince faced the camera, holding up a peace sign. The smile on his face looked proud, almost provocative.

Through the large window behind them, bright daylight poured in.

The time. The place. The people.

Everything was obvious.

As I stared at the photo, my heart seemed to have frozen solid, then shattered into pieces.

Last night, she was at the bar. This morning, she was in a hotel.

What a smooth transition.

I turned off my phone and walked into the kitchen without a word. I poured myself a glass of ice water and drank it in one go.

The cold slid down my throat, but it didn't cool the fire burning in my chest.

At 10 a.m., Natasha finally came home. She still smelled faintly of alcohol and a cologne that didn't belong to me.

When she saw me sitting in the living room, she paused for a moment.

Then, she quickly put on a flattering smile.

"Are you still mad?"

I looked at her quietly.

I decided to give her one last chance. "Where did you go last night? What did you do?"

Her eyes flickered, avoiding my gaze. She reached for my hand.

"I drank too much last night and slept at Fiona's place. Can we not fight? The wedding's the day after tomorrow. Let's not ruin things over something small."

She was still lying.

That was the moment I completely gave up.

I shook her hand off and stood up.

"I'm tired. Handle the wedding however you want."

I went back to my room and locked the door.

She knocked on it for a while, confused and irritated, but I ignored her completely.

Then, I took out my phone and found Vince's contact.

I sent him a message. [Downtown Starbucks, 3 p.m. Let's talk.]

He replied almost immediately. [Sure.]

At 3 p.m., Vince arrived right on time.

When he saw me, he gave a polite, apologetic smile.

"Alan, I'm really sorry. Natasha drank too much last night and kept talking. I had to stay with her and take care of her."

His words sounded apologetic, but the pride in his eyes was impossible to hide.

"Is that so?" I stirred the coffee in front of me, my tone calm. "Well, thanks for the hard work."

He seemed surprised by how calm I was.

After a brief pause, he spoke again, "Don't misunderstand. Natasha and I are just friends. I know you two are getting married. I sincerely wish you both happiness."

He hesitated slightly before continuing.

"It's just… Natasha has a lot on her mind. Some things she can only say to me. She told me her biggest regret is…"

"That she can't marry you. Right?" I finished the sentence for him.

Vince's expression instantly changed.

I looked at him and smiled faintly. "I dug up the time capsule you two buried."

He stopped pretending after that. "If you already know, why are you still holding onto her? The person she has loved from the beginning has always been me."

I set down my coffee and met his eyes.

"In that case," I said calmly, "you can have her."

Vince's eyes widened in shock. "W-What do you mean?"

"What I mean is, you can be the groom at tomorrow's wedding."