Joshua Martinez once again stood me up for the date that I had been looking forward to for a long time.

I heard the woman on the other end of the phone ask him for a bath towel in a soft voice.

But I calmly focused on my fast food.

For the last time, I decided to step aside and let him be with the woman he loved more.

——

The phone rang just as I was about to take a bite of steak.

"Hello," I said.

"I'm sorry, Selena. I got held up with something and won't be able to make it to dinner," Joshua said, sounding tired.

As I continued to eat, I reassured him considerately.

"It's okay. You take care of what you need to do first."

He heard the noise from the fast food restaurant I was in and seemed a bit stunned.

"You... didn't go to La Maison, either?" he asked.

La Maison is a renowned restaurant for couples, and reservations are required a month in advance.

"No, because I had a team dinner with my colleagues."

"Then why didn't you tell me? Do you want me to go there for nothing?"

I remained unruffled by his angry question.

I replied casually, "No, you didn't go, did you? Besides, didn't Hailey Wilson lose her cat? Have you found it?"

Joshua's anger suddenly subsided, and he was a little hesitant but not guilty at all.

"It wasn't missing. It hid in the corner of the stairs. We've found it."

"Okay, I'm having dinner now. Let's talk when I get home."

At the same time, a woman's small but clear voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Josh, could you hand me my bath towel?"

I pursed my lips and hung up on Joshua.

He didn't say where he was or why he stood me up.

But I had guessed it.

An hour ago, Hailey posted something on Instagram.

[My cat is missing. I'm so scared. Can anyone help me?] At the end was a crying emoji.

When I saw this post, I immediately canceled my reservation at La Maison.

Going to a couples' restaurant alone would just make me a laughingstock.

After all, this wasn't the first time something like this had happened.

Whenever Hailey was in trouble, Joshua always jumped in to help first.

She was a business partner he had met at a dinner party.

She had just graduated from college and was young and attractive.

She looked charmingly mischievous and lively.

She was like a wildflower just coming into bloom, delicate, beautiful, and fragile.

Joshua criticized her for being impulsive and immature, but he only did so after helping her.

I kept hearing more about Hailey because she'd been increasingly present in Joshua's life.

He talked about her work and her life.

According to him, Hailey was quite interesting.

He described her as a lonely little wildflower—resilient and unyielding, which made people feel a sense of sympathy for her.

Every now and then, she would post something sad on Instagram and send Joshua subtle, unspoken messages on WhatsApp.

All this made Joshua feel anxious and restless, overwhelmed by his sense of responsibility.

And no matter when or where, he would go to her.

When I was sick, she just so happened to sprain her ankle.

When I took time off for my birthday, he had to look after her because she wasn't feeling well.

When I worked late and couldn't find a cab, he was celebrating her birthday and partying all night.

Things like that had happened again and again, and I had been used to it.

Now, it was just another minor missed appointment, and I barely felt any emotional upheaval.

I did feel it was a shame not to go to the famous restaurant, but that was all.

Back home, I freshened up and went to bed.

In the middle of the night, the side of the bed where Joshua usually sleeps sank, so I instinctively moved to the other side.

The next morning, I couldn't help but think that an extra 20 minutes of sleep felt like a liberating gift.

As I ate my breakfast, I scrolled through the news on my phone.

Joshua walked out of the bedroom, in a pair of shorts and a sweatshirt, yawning.

He exuded a sense of laziness and casualness.

He glanced at the coffee and omelet on the table and said, "You didn't make breakfast today?"

"No, I've been really tired from work lately. I wanted to sleep in a bit longer. We'll just buy breakfast from now on."

"Alright, I told you not to bother."

I didn't respond, scrolling through my phone. He turned around and went into the bathroom.

He often had a lot of dinner parties and social gatherings, and I used to experiment with stomach-soothing recipes for him, cooking porridge early in the morning.

My cooking was pretty good, and he enjoyed it, but two months ago, he started finding excuses not to eat or ate very little.

I worried that he'd be hungry in the morning, so I kept making his portion.

Recently, though, he suddenly started eating again.

Curious, I checked Hailey's ‎Instagram.

Sure enough, I found the latest missed update.

[The breakfast shop downstairs is closed. Looks like I won't be able to bring breakfast for someone anymore. Hope he doesn't end up starving.]

I immediately understood the hidden meaning.

<Just as I have expected.> That was what came to my mind.

From that moment on, I felt sorry for myself and realized I had wronged myself.

A quarrel that couldn't solve problems would only drain my energy.

So, I stopped bringing it up.

Whenever it came to Hailey, Joshua always thought I was targeting her and slandering her.

...

I kept losing my temper and exploding.

He ended up choosing Hailey repeatedly and siding with her.

His dismissive comment about being "just a friend" left me speechless.

He acted as if it was a matter of course.

He didn't feel guilty or offer an explanation; he just often scolded me impatiently.

"You're so annoying. I've told you a hundred times she's just a friend. Can't I have female friends? She doesn't have any family here, and I'm just helping her out. Hailey is right; people who are morally corrupt see everything in a negative light."

In the end, he slammed the door and left, not returning home for several days.

Silent treatment doesn't solve problems but can suppress those who raise them.

Because I love him more, I'm always the one to compromise first.

At this point, I didn't want to say anything more.

Anyway, he could feed himself with whatever food he got, so I wouldn't bother doing anything that wasn't worth it.

As I was getting ready to leave, he looked at me hesitantly as if he wanted to say something.

...

But he didn't speak up, and I didn't plan to ask. As I reached for the doorknob, he pulled me back.

I turned my head and asked, "What's wrong?"

He pressed his lips together, looking at me but still not speaking.

I frowned and looked down, checking the time on my phone.

"I'm going to miss the bus," I said.

"Last night, I didn't intentionally stand you up. It was because Hailey's cat ran away. She really likes that cat, and I went to help her because she was so anxious. Also…"

He trailed off, and I lifted my phone to show him the time.

"Also, you might have heard what she said last night, but she was sweating while looking for the cat, and I was just watching the cat while she took a shower. I promise nothing happened."

He finished in a hurry and anxiously waited for my reaction.

"Is that all?" I asked.

He nodded in a daze.

"Okay, I'm going to work."

As I opened the door, he pushed it shut again, blocking my way.

"Are you angry? You don't trust me, do you?"

He sounded irritated again, so I had to explain.

"No, I trust you. It's normal for you to help her since she's a girl. It's also normal for her to sweat and take a shower. Besides, you came back last night, didn't you?"

He looked surprised, unable to believe I wasn't arguing with him and even responded with such understanding.

"Okay, if I don't leave soon, I'll really be late."

Without waiting for his reply, I pushed him away and left.

After entering the house in the evening, I casually put the packed pizza on the table.

From Joshua's room came the intense sound of gunfire from a video game.

"Be careful, Eliza. Walk behind me. I'll protect you."

Seeing that he was absorbed in the game, I went straight to the bathroom to shower.

He often played this game with Hailey and several of their colleagues.

I had tried playing too, but I never enjoyed it much due to my lack of skill.

After getting killed as soon as I landed in the game, I would often just sit and wait for him and Hailey to finish playing, which could take up to half an hour.

To have something to talk about with him, I practiced hard privately.

Although my shooting skills were still not as good as Joshua's, they at least surpassed Hailey's.

I was pleased to think that this was a way to understand him better.

However, whenever Hailey died in the game, he would quit and restart.

After a few rounds, I couldn't help but feel frustrated.

But he threw down his headset before I could say anything.

"Do you want her to wait around? It's ruining the game experience.

"Besides, you're not exactly great at the game either. Do you enjoy just waiting around?

"It's not like I begged you to play."

I couldn't remember how long that silent treatment had lasted.

But, as usual, I ended up giving in first, just like before.

When I came out of the bathroom, he was still playing, so I went straight to the bedroom.

The light from the middle of the night was too bright, so I covered my head with the blanket.

Joshua held me tightly with the blanket.

"Selena, why didn't you tell me when you were home? I'm a little hungry now. Get up and make me some spaghetti."

"I already brought you food. It's on the table."

My head felt strangely heavy, and I was too drowsy to open my eyes.

"But it's all cold now, and I don't like pizza. You used to cook for me."

"Then just order takeout yourself."

"You've been so busy lately and haven't really paid any attention to me. It's the weekend tomorrow. Why don't you get up and chat with me?"

After trying to coax me for a while with no response, Joshua began to get impatient.

"Are you getting up or not?" he barked.

After another period of silence, there was a loud bang in the room.

I pulled up the blanket and turned over, falling back asleep until morning.

The next day, I slept until noon, and my throat hurt a lot.

I felt a bit dazed and realized that I must have had a mild fever last night.

Thankfully, it wasn't a big deal.

After that night, Antonia hadn't contacted me for a week.

In the past, I would have apologized and begged him to come back within three days over such small matters.

Now, I was quite content with the peace and quiet.

However, his friend sent me a message first.

His friends inexplicably disliked me.

They made mean comments and subtly put me down while praising themselves.

If I got upset, they'd say I couldn't take a joke and was ruining the fun.

Joshua had advised me not to take it too seriously and to be more open-minded.

I used to avoid confrontations and had endured a lot of their unpleasantness.

When I answered the phone, the person ordered me to go to a bar quickly.

I replied with "not available" and hung up first.

After doing this twice, the person finally became friendly.

They went on about wanting me to find Joshua.

But I wasn't lying. I really was busy.

I was looking for a new place to live.

The current rental was close to Joshua's company, but my commute took over an hour.

Every day, I got up early to go to work and barely managed to stay awake.

I was already exhausted and resentful, not to mention that I had to take the crowded bus home.

I didn't even have the energy to kill myself even if I wanted to.

After a few days of searching, I decided on a place near my office.

Daniel Brown was the person who had called me that day.

As expected, he called again today.

"Hey, Selena, Joshua is completely drunk and out of it. Can you come to the bar and pick him up?"

I furrowed my eyebrows and glanced at the boxes by the door.

"But I really have things to do."

"I'm begging you. It was understandable that you were busy with work the other day, but it's Saturday today. You still can't make time? I seriously doubt it. I've been at the bar for days, and my girlfriend is upset and breaking up with me..."

Daniel whined, and I interrupted him helplessly.

"Just book him a hotel. He hasn't been sleeping on the streets these days, has he? There must be somewhere for him to stay."

There was silence on the other end of the line, followed by the sound of glass shattering and shouting.

"Daniel, who told you to call her? I don't need her to pick me up."

Joshua was always like this—pretending to be confused even though he was clear-headed.

He used that as an excuse when Hailey called him away, when he left me behind.

Joshua, feeling guilty, was no longer angry and put on a sad expression.

He said, "But you're letting another woman pick up your drunk boyfriend.

"We've been apart for so long. Have you even called me once? Have you shown any concern for me? You weren't like this before."

"But you and Hailey are just friends.

"I used to be too sensitive, but I've changed. Isn't it better now that I can trust and understand you?" I said.

Joshua was stunned as if he couldn't understand my words.

I smiled and sighed softly.

"Why are you acting this way? Isn't this what you want?"

Joshua fell silent, his clenched fists relaxing and then tightening again.

Looking at the mess all over the place, I was disappointed and heartbroken.

I turned to leave, but Joshua stopped me.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

He hesitated, seemingly wanting to change the subject.

"There's a new restaurant downstairs. How about I take you there to try it?"

His tone was gentle, and he even smiled at me.

He was trying to brush off the argument lightly.

But a wave of helplessness washed over me.

Three years is neither long nor short.

I once truly, deeply loved him, loving with all my heart and conscience.

But she was not the same.

He took advantage of my love without even giving a perfunctory response.

Even if Hailey weren't in the picture, there would be others in the future.

We are doomed to have no future together.

But some things needed to be said face to face.

I was just about to nod when the sudden ringtone of Joshua's phone interrupted me.

It was Hailey's special ringtone, set after Joshua lost a dare at one of their company parties.

...

I had protested and argued with Joshua to change it.

But he thought I was making a big deal out of nothing.

He stubbornly kept it and was still using it now.

The name "Hailey" kept flashing on the phone.

Joshua glanced at it and frowned, looking a little impatient.

After hesitating for a while, he wanted to reject the call.

"Answer it," I said.

"No, let's have dinner. It's probably not a big deal."

I was surprised. This was the first time I had taken precedence over his close friend Hailey.

Soon, the second and third calls came in one after another.

Joshua's expression grew more serious as he kept glancing at the phone unconsciously.

I snatched his phone away and answered the call without batting an eyelid.

The reluctance Joshua showed when he took the phone and the way he anxiously dashed out the door were striking and ironic.

After running three steps out the door, he suddenly remembered I was there.

He stiffly turned around, and I slightly tilted my head to look directly at him.

"I... Hailey had a car accident. I want to go see her."