The Real Goodbye

It's time to wake up from this shattered yet beautiful dream.

"Zoey, you're still weak. I'll go buy you garlic bread and cream soup from Candor Street, okay?"

Every time I got sick, Keith would buy me garlic bread and cream soup from that place. It wasn't because the food was particularly delicious, but because Candor Street was far away and the shop always had a long queue. I loved watching Keith busy himself for me—it felt like I could piece together evidence of his love for me through his actions.

I smiled and nodded, hiding any trace of emotion that might betray me.

Just as Keith reached for the door handle, his assistant hurried in. I caught a name in their hushed conversation—Sadie. Keith turned back to me, his face showing a hint of hesitation. "Zoey, there's an urgent matter at work. I have to go, but I promise I'll come back tonight and spend time with you. I swear!"

"It's okay, go ahead and take care of it," I replied. There was no "I promise," only self-deception.

Keith hired a caregiver to look after me, but I didn't have much of an appetite. My head was heavy and throbbing and the smell of disinfectant constantly dragged me back to the scene of my parents' death.

They had been hit by a truck while saving Keith, who had snuck out. There was so much blood and the white gauze couldn't stop it.

My mom held my hand. I cried loudly as if the sheer force of my sobs could snatch them back from Death's grip. Sadly, the heavens showed me no mercy.

Keith's grandmother knelt before my parents' bodies and vowed to take care of me.

I moved into the Jordan household. At first, everyone treated me well. However, things changed as time went on. I was just an orphan—how could I ever be worthy of Keith? When Elizabeth suggested an engagement between us, I was so nervous my fingers clenched tight and my heart skipped a beat.

I looked at Keith with cautious hope. He smiled at me warmly, like the sun breaking through clouds. He unexpectedly agreed with this.

I thought he liked me, but the phrase, "Zoey is just clinging to the favor her parents earned by saving my life," lingered in my mind like an unshakable shadow.

Tears soaked into the sheets and I slept for a long time. So, long that night quietly descended.

A cold gust of wind woke me when the door opened. A surge of joy bloomed in my chest when I saw Keith. He kept his promise; he really came.

Unfortunately, the beautiful figure behind him easily and completely shattered my poor expectations.

The way Keith looked at her was a gaze filled with tenderness mixed with caution. I recognized it too well. It was the look of someone gazing up at another person, full of affection and restraint.

"He touched my forehead gently. "Good, no more fever."

"Zoey, this is Sadie. Do you remember her? She used to live next door to my house. She went abroad six years ago and now she's back to work here. Her hand was injured, so I brought her to the hospital. When she heard you were sick, she insisted on stopping by to see you. You two chat for a bit—I'll go check with the doctor about your condition."

I'd met Sadie once before.

It was during a fireworks party, but I couldn't find Keith and went out to look for him. I saw him standing outside her building, holding a trembling rabbit in his arms. His feet shuffled nervously and he didn't even notice the snow on his hair.

I recognized the rabbit—it was one Keith had picked out after a long search. Elizabeth had teased me, saying, "That boy really cares about you. He spent an entire day at the pet market finding just the right rabbit and it nearly froze him to death!"

Now, I was the one frozen to the bone.

Keith eagerly handed her the rabbit as if presenting a treasure when Sadie came out, but she turned her nose up at it. "Keith, it's so dirty!"

After saying that, she ran back home without looking back.

When Keith came back in despair, his arms were empty. I rushed out like crazy to find the rabbit, secretly took it back and hid it in the attic.