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Seven Years of Love Ends After One More Broken Promise
On the night of my birthday, I waited for Zachary at the restaurant until 10:30 PM.
He stood me up again.
When I saw Chloe’s post on SnapChat, I was surprised to find that I felt nothing.
At that moment, I realized I had finally let go.
Zachary had made the reservation for this restaurant in advance.
Last month, on Chloe’s birthday, Zachary took her to watch the sunrise by the sea.
When I angrily confronted Zachary about it, he accused me of being paranoid, saying it was just a group of friends, not just the two
of them.
We gave each other the silent treatment for half a month because of that.
Yesterday, Zachary sent me a screenshot of the restaurant reservation.
I knew this was his way of extending an olive branch.
Every time we argued or stopped talking, I was always the one to break the ice, the first to speak to him again.
After we made up, he would give me a gift or show some affection, coaxing me a little. I would be over the moon, forgetting all the unpleasantness and fully rekindling my passion for him.
This is how we’ve been getting by these past few years.
He’d hurt me, then give me a little sweetness, and I’d forget everything.
The temperature of our relationship was entirely in his control.
I was like a kite in his hands, the string firmly in his grasp.
Depending on his mood, he manipulated my emotions.
Shame on me for being so weak, always quick to forgive and forget.
My love was too humble.
But yesterday, when I saw the screenshot of the reservation he sent, I didn’t feel the usual joy.
In the past, just the fact that he remembered my birthday would have been enough to make me feel cherished.
After all, every year on my birthday, I had to remind him several times a day for days in advance before he would remember to buy me a gift.
This year, I had forgotten my own birthday and hadn’t reminded him, yet he remembered on his own.
Yesterday at work, when I received his message, I was surprised to realize it was my birthday.
I replied, “Okay, see you at the restaurant tomorrow night.”
I turned off my phone and continued working, instead of basking in the sweetness of his gesture for hours like I used to,
1:04
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Tonight after work, I received a message from Zachary: “See you at the restaurant later.”
After work, I arrived at the restaurant first.
The reservation was for 7 PM, and I got there at 6:30.
By 8 PM, Zachary still hadn’t shown up.
I called him, but there was no answer. I sent messages, but got no reply.
At 9:30, the waiter asked if I wanted to order, saying they would be closing at 10:30.
I nodded.
I slowly ate my steak alone and had some red wine. At 10:30, I walked out of the restaurant.
While waiting for a cab by the roadside, I scrolled through SnapChat and saw Chloe’s post.
The text read: “You are my sense of security.”
The accompanying photo showed Zachary’s profile as he sat on a sofa.
The moment I saw the picture, I felt no anger, no hurt, no sadness.
My mind was completely calm.
Instead, I felt a sense of achievement, as if I had long ago guessed the answer to a riddle.
See? I knew it.
Every time he stood me up, it was because of Chloe.
Strangely, this time, I didn’t feel sad at all.
2
After getting home, I washed up and went straight to bed.
In the middle of the night, while I was sound asleep, I heard the sound of the door opening.
I knew it was Zachary coming back.
Annoyed at being woken up, I kept my eyes closed and pretended to be asleep, not wanting to deal with him.
The soft footsteps stopped at the bedside, and there was silence for a long time.
Even with my eyes closed, I could feel his intense gaze on me.
Is Zachary crazy?
Why doesn’t he just wash up and go to sleep instead of staring at me when he gets back?
It’s really annoying to disturb someone’s sleep like this.
Could it be because I didn’t turn on all the lights in the apartment and sit angrily in the living room waiting for him to come back, then question and argue with him like I used to?
1:05 PM dd.
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He should be happy, shouldn’t he?
After all, in the past, whenever I went crazy or even became hysterical, he would just stand by coldly, his eyes full of impatience and disgust.
His condescending gaze made me feel like a ridiculous clown.
In the past, when I argued with him about his relationship with Chloe, he would at least explain a little, saying they were just friends and had never crossed any lines, that I was overthinking things.
Later, he couldn’t even be bothered to explain anymore.
He would let me explode with emotion like a volcano, then slowly burn out on my own.
Now, I’ve finally come to terms with it and let it go.
Thinking back to how I used to be, I really was quite crazy. I must have looked so ugly when I had those emotional breakdowns.
No wonder Zachary was disgusted.
At this moment, I had no desire to question him at all. I just wanted to sleep.
Zachary stared for a while, and seeing no reaction from me, he called out, “Olivia?”
I pretended to be in a deep sleep, not moving at all.
After a moment, he finally left.
I heard the sound of running water from the bathroom. He was washing up.
The faint sound actually had a hypnotic effect, and I fell asleep listening to it. I didn’t even know when Zachary came to bed.
The next morning, I got up and went straight to work.
All day, I was immersed in my work, and time passed quickly.
After work, I ate dinner out before going home.
As soon as I walked in, Zachary was sitting on the sofa.
“Why are you home so early today?” I asked while changing my shoes.
“No overtime,” he said.
