At a class reunion, my girlfriend Queena Morris and her childhood friend Fitch Howard played Truth or Dare. They drew a task card of performing a sweet interaction.

They behaved intimately.

Everyone watched my expression carefully and was afraid that I would ruin the party.

I just smiled faintly, "That is sweet. Why don't you kiss each other?"

***

It was my ninety-eighth love trip with Queena.

She left me behind again and made an appointment to go hiking with Fitch, leaving me alone in the hotel.

Five years before, when I graduated from college, I proposed to her, but she said she hadn't enjoyed the single life enough and would only get engaged to me after we had traveled to ninety-nine places.

In five years, we took ninety-eight trips, and Fitch accompanied us on ninety of them.

The eight times he didn't go were because he really couldn't spare the time.

And during the eight times I traveled alone with her, she either complained about the hotel or the route, and we always ended up not being happy.

When I woke up, they were both gone.

At that time, Fitch posted a message on Facebook: [I must conquer the mountain I have always wanted to climb.]

The location was a mountain in the city where we were traveling. It was a famous spot.

He also posted a picture of Queena's profile. In the picture, her expression showed relaxation and satisfaction.

She never showed that in front of me no matter what I tried.

I pretended not to see it and put away my phone. After finishing my meal, I sent a message to Queena: [Are you hiking? I'll come find you.]

She didn't reply.

A heavy rainstorm broke out halfway through the journey and I was trapped in the mountain.

The heavy rain caused a flash flood, and at the critical moment, I called Queena for help.

The call was connected, and Fitch's voice came, "What's up? Let's talk tomorrow. She is exhausted from climbing the mountain today and has already fallen asleep."

After saying that, he hung up the phone.

The cold rain hit me mercilessly, extinguishing my obsession with her bit by bit.

By the time I escaped death and returned home, it was already the third day.

During that period, Queena did not call me or send me messages.

When I arrived at the hotel, it was already evening, a little after ten o'clock, and she was sleeping soundly.

Looking at her sleeping face and thinking back on what I had done for her over the years, I always felt aggrieved.

But that was the first time that I no longer ignored my own feelings and faced up to the grievances I had suffered over the years. She was not worth all I had done for her.

After seeing the news about the flash flood, she asked me, "You didn't encounter the flash flood, did you?"

I drank the milk in my hand and said, "I did. I almost died there. But the rescue came in time and I survived."

She choked and paused for a moment before saying, "What? Why didn't you tell me about such a big thing?"

I listened to her complaints and smiled.

"I called you, but Fitch said you were sleeping next to him."

Her face changed slightly. She stood up angrily and shouted at me, "What do you mean? You doubt me? Are you a man? You don't even trust your own woman!"

That gave her the perfect excuse to get angry, and just like before, she slammed the door and left at the slightest dissatisfaction.

But I didn't chase after her like I did before. Instead, I took a nap after breakfast. I just escaped death two days before and my body had not yet recovered.

We gave each other the silent treatment for ten days.

During the ten days, we lived under the same roof without saying a word.

It was not until she got home that she bought two movie tickets and condescended to talk to me.

"Let's go to the movies together tomorrow."

If it were in the past, if she took the initiative to talk to me, no matter how big the conflict was, I would probably jump for joy and want to give her the best things in the world.

But now my first reaction when I saw the movie ticket was that I didn't want to go.

I glanced at the movie name on the movie ticket and paused.

That was a movie I had been thinking about for a long time. So I decided to go and watch it.

"Ok."

She frowned, not very satisfied with my reaction.

But she still held back and continued, "My brother is coming over in the next two days. You vacate your room for him."

It turned out that it was the purpose of her taking the initiative to make peace.

I looked at the movie ticket and agreed, "Okay."

She was quite satisfied.

But she didn't show up until the movie was almost over.

I watched the movie alone and felt relaxed both physically and mentally. It was worth waiting so long for!

After the movie ended, I checked my phone and saw Fitch's Moments.

[Thank you for always being there for me.] The accompanying picture was Queena's back. The hair tie she used to tie her ponytail was bought by me personally.

The location was the largest murder mystery game club in the city.

If it were in the past, when I saw that, I would definitely be furious and rush over to confront and argue with the two of them, while Fitch would show weakness to highlight his compromise, and Queena would become even more impatient with me.

But now, when I saw that, I felt surprisingly calm.

I smiled sincerely and turned off my phone.

In the evening, she came back and briefly explained, "I'm sorry. The tickets for that murder mystery game are too hard to get today. We can watch the movie later. You don't mind, right?"

I replied, "I don't mind. You also said that the tickets are indeed hard to get. It's understandable."

She walked to the door of my room and saw that my things were still there. She frowned and asked, "Didn't I tell you to vacate your room yesterday? My brother is coming tomorrow. How will he sleep in your room?"

I spread my hands, sat down and said, "Book a hotel for him. I don't have much time recently."

Her expression turned from gloomy to bright, "Alright, then remember to book him a five-star hotel. He's very picky."

I turned around and said, "He is your brother."

Her smile froze, "What do you mean?"

I repeated patiently, "He is your brother. You book him in whatever hotel you want."

She was so angry that she trembled all over, then slammed the door and left again.

Queena didn't come back until after eight o'clock, reeking of alcohol.

She threw the gift bag in her hand over and said arrogantly, "Take it. You've wanted it for a long time.

"It cost me more than two hundred dollars. By the way, I want that new Chanel bag. You haven't bought me a bag in two months.

"Also, I want to eat noodles tomorrow morning. You remember to cook it for me."

We had been together for six years, and I had carefully prepared three meals for her every day. She became a fussy eater because of me and didn't like the takeout at all.

I used to buy her a bag every month. After all those years, her closet should be full of bags.

But that wasn't the case. The bag I bought for her the day before would be returned by her the next day. As for where the refunded money went, I didn't know and never asked.

I always thought that since I gave it to her, it was her freedom to do whatever she wanted with it.

The gift bag rolled to my feet, revealing its contents.

It was a couple outfit.

I had always wanted to wear matching outfits with her, but she never wanted to.

On the contrary, if Fitch happened to wear the same color clothes as her, she would be happy all day long.

Now the couple outfit that I had always wanted was thrown at my feet by her like a handout.

I bent down to pick up the bag on the ground and put it on the coffee table.

"If you want to eat noodles, order takeout. I'm really busy now."

She showed impatience, "Is it because of what happened between Fitch and me that day when we were climbing the mountain? I have explained many times. You are still so petty! Fitch saved..."

"I know he saved your life. You've said it many times. I understand!"

"But why you're still being unreasonable? If I wanted to be with him, we would have been together a long time ago and I wouldn't be with you. Besides, you can't blame me for all that, right?"

She seemed to have been feeling wronged for a long time, and finally couldn't help but burst out, "Ida Bell's boyfriend bought her a house, a car, and a few large diamond rings. What about you?

"Even Fitch also knows how to comfort me all night long when I'm sad. As my boyfriend, you only know to doubt me!"

If it were in the past, when I listened to that, I would have seriously reflected on my shortcomings just as she wanted, then put aside my self-esteem to coax her, and given everything I had to make her happy and satisfied.

But now, I really didn't care at all.

An ungrateful person would never be satisfied no matter how well I treated her.

Over the years, when we traveled, she wanted the best of everything. After five years, I had spent at least 700,000 or 800,000 dollars on her.

I had to buy a bag and other things for her every one or two months, and she never went to work.

Her brother asked me for money every now and then, and I had never refused.

That all was worth more than one house.

I never really argued with her about those things just because I loved her.

Now, I just wanted to stop loss in time. It was not too late.

"I'm really busy right now. If you're hungry, just order some takeout. If you're tired, just take a good rest."

Those two days I was preparing my resume and looking for a new job.

I spoke in a cold tone, and she laughed in anger, "Harry Lee, I gave you a chance, but you didn't want it!"

I've become so accustomed to the familiar sound of her slamming the door that I didn't feel anything. I had even kind of predicted her movements.

After she left, I returned to the room and saw a resume on the desk.

When I graduated, I used that resume to apply for a programmer position at a big company and got accepted on the first try.

Queena said that I would be very busy and have no time to take care of her if I worked for the big company.

For her, I gave up the opportunity to work in the big company.

Over the years, I had been taking odd jobs and earning a lot of money, but it was common for me to not be able to sleep well for three or five days when I was very busy.

From time to time, I had to coax Queena. Once, she got so angry that she didn't let me work.

Not only did I fail to finish on time and not make any money, but I also had to compensate the other party for their losses and lost a long-term customer.

It was like working for a whole month in vain.

But she was still not satisfied.

I looked at the resume, and the thought suppressed in my heart when I graduated became strong again.

Maybe I should live for myself.

I made a new resume based on that one, and added a long list of cases I had handled over the years in the resume section.

By the time I finished typing the last word, the long page could hardly fit.

Looking at the results of the work, I laughed happily.

No matter what time, those things really made me confident.

The moment the email was sent, I felt relaxed. Then I started to feel sleepy, so I turned off the lights and went to sleep. But just as I was about to fall asleep, there was a rude knock on the door.