Too Late for Forever

In the morning, a message came through.

[Lacey's place lost power last night. I helped her until late. Didn't want to wake you, so I stayed in a hotel. Not at her place.]

He had always been frank like this. He never avoided mentioning Lacey in front of me.

He believed that as long as he explained himself clearly, there was no problem.

Another message popped up.

[I booked that restaurant you've been wanting to try. Dinner tonight.]

This was his usual way of handling things.

An explanation, followed by a piece of candy. Whether I accepted it or not, he would automatically consider the matter settled.

As long as he thought he'd explained himself, then I wasn't supposed to stay upset.

The few times I could not take it anymore and tried to talk things through, the look in his eyes was always the same–as if I was being unreasonable.

So most of the time, I swallowed my grievances and pretended to be mature and understanding just to keep him happy.

I replied: [Okay.]

Felix could handle spicy food, but he didn't really like it. Normally, he would never suggest taking me there himself.

I should have been happy.

However, I felt nothing.

…

I assumed Felix would not come pick me up, so I called a car myself.

Turns out I was right again.

His office was on the way to the restaurant. From inside the rideshare, I saw him smiling faintly as he shielded Lacey's head with one hand while helping her into the passenger seat.

Something shifted in my chest. I opened my phone.

Sure enough, several new messages had come through.

[Lacey's joining us for dinner too. She's been working overtime these past few days and hasn't been eating properly.]

[She can't handle spicy food. I'll take you there another time. We're changing restaurants tonight.]

[I'll send you the address.]

I turned my screen off, and still went to the original restaurant.

Felix had already cancelled the reservation, so I had to wait in line.

The place was packed. I waited an hour before finally getting a table.

I kept eating while my phone buzzed nonstop beside me.

The food was authentically spicy. My eyes even watered from the heat.

However, it felt satisfying.

Only when I asked for the bill did I finally check my phone.

As expected, there were more than a dozen messages.

[Are you there yet?]

[Are you seriously throwing a tantrum again? Didn't I tell you we'd go another time?]

[Lacey's stomach is sensitive. You're basically her sister-in-law already. Can't you be more understanding?]

[She feels so guilty she can't even eat. Hurry over!]

The same things over and over again.

Still, it was more messages than we had exchanged in the past month combined.

…

On the ride home, I kept wondering–why had I fallen for Felix in the first place?

I think it was the day his startup got rejected by investors for the twentieth time, while my design drafts were being sent back for the thirty-fifth revision.

There was a thunderstorm that day.

We ended up taking shelter in the same café and started awkwardly chatting just to pass the time.

By the time the rain stopped, we had somehow clicked.

After that, we naturally got together.

I never believed in love at first sight. Without time and emotional foundation, love always felt fragile to me–something that would disappear quickly.

However, during the six years I spent with Felix, I often thought I was lucky.

Out of all the people in the world, I had somehow met the person I was meant to spend my life with through that single moment.

Now that I thought about it carefully…

Were those six years really built on mutual love?

Or was I the only one holding on all along?