Chapter 4

I struggled to my feet, brushing the dust from my pajamas. The fire cast a warm glow on my face, but my voice was ice–cold.

“It’s fine. I opened the album and saw bugs crawling inside, maybe cockroaches, so I burned it.”

Seeing my calm demeanor, Lucas finally realized he might’ve overreacted. Taking a deep breath, he softened his tone.

“Are you okay? I’m sorry–I got a little too worked up. We’ve been collecting those photos for ten years. Weren’t we going to share them at our wedding? Why did you burn them?”

“If there were bugs, you could’ve waited for me to come back or at least messaged me. I would’ve taken care of it,” he added.

I didn’t bother looking at him. The man standing before me was no longer the boy who had once promised to protect me forever.

“You’ve been busy with work for ages, so I didn’t want to bother you with something so trivial.”

He stood beside me, gazing sadly at the ashes. This scene couldn’t have been more ironic–he was the one who destroyed our ten–year relationship for another woman, yet here he was, acting like he still cared.

I turned to go back inside, but he mistook my indifference for pouting and pulled me into his arms. The sickly–sweet scent of Black Opium cologne filled the air, making me sneeze repeatedly, but he didn’t let go, seemingly overwhelmed with remorse.

“Are you feeling sick?” he asked, his voice tender. “I’m sorry. I know I’ve been neglecting you lately. Once things settle down, let’s retake those photos, alright? We’ll replace what was lost–double it, even!”

If it was before, hearing these words might’ve softened me. But after a trip to the ER and realizing he’d forgotten my severe allergy in favor of another woman, I could no longer pretend. I didn’t want to have anything to do with him anymore.

When he finally released me, I pulled away with resolve, and said, “No need to apologize. If you really want to make it up to me, maybe you could throw me a proper birthday party.”

Due to my cream allergy, I was always missing from my own celebrations. But since I’d be leaving soon, I wanted to experience at least one birthday with him by my side.

Surprisingly, he seemed rattled by my simple request. He nodded, but before he could respond further, his phone rang. Glancing at the screen, he quickly explained, “It’s something urgent from work. Don’t wait for me tonight–I’ll make it up to you, I promise.”

As he spoke, he was already backing away. By the time he finished, he was meters away, practically running.

Actually, I was aware that it was the ringtone exclusively for Celine, but I didn’t confront him about his lie.

The next morning, people arrived to set up the party, and among them was Celine herself. She claimed to be there to oversee the arrangements since she’d designed the setup. But by the end of the day, I noticed that the decorations were just a simpler version of her own birthday party.

When the workers left, she sauntered over, a smug smile on her face.

“Well, everyone’s been hard at work all day. What do you think? Does it suit your taste?”

As I looked at her, my gaze darted to the necklace she wore–a piece I had lost. I squinted my eyes as I intoned coldly, “A secondhand setup for a secondhand person. It suits you just fine.”

Hearing my words, Celine seemed offended, and without another word, she glanced to the side, picked up a crystal ornament, and smashed it to the floor. A shard cut her foot, and she began to cry pitifully.

Before I could react, Lucas stormed over and slapped me across the face.

“Enough with the tantrums! Celine took the day off to help with your party, and this is how you repay her?” he growled.

“If you don’t like it, then do it yourself!”

Without waiting for an explanation, he scooped Celine into his arms and rushed her out. I sat alone in the now–lifeless room, the silence around me growing heavy.

The next morning, no one had shown up for the party. Well, it was not surprising, really–Lucas had been my only friend for these ten years.

When the cake arrived, I opened the box, cut myself a small piece, and stuck a single candle in it. Closing my eyes, I made a simple wish. “May we never meet again.”

I couldn’t even eat the cake because of my allergy. When my phone rang, signaling the end of my countdown, I grabbed my suitcase and walked out without looking back.

On the way to the airport, I sent Lucas one final message.

“Let’s end things here. There’s no need to keep in touch.”

Not even a breakup. Just a simple ending to ten years of my life.

As I turned off my phone before boarding, he was already calling me like a madman.

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