It was my girlfriend Marilyn Wilson's birthday party today.

I was late because my boss suddenly asked me to work overtime.

When I walked into the private room, Marilyn was kissing her best friend, Yves Whitman, passionately.

Everyone held their breath, and all eyes were on me.

They were looking forward to my reaction.

I smiled and walked up to Yves.

"Let's have a drink, and the winner can take her away tonight."

Yves picked up his glass and downed it all in one gulp while I put down mine without taking a sip.

"You win. Marilyn will be yours from now on. I wish you happiness."

***

"Gabriel, you bastard, what do you take me for?"

"What were you doing just now?" I shouted.

"It's just a game. Why did you yell at me like that?"

It was Marilyn's birthday today.

She arranged a birthday party.

I was an hour late because of some work.

When I entered the room, Marilyn and Yves were passionately embracing and kissing.

At the same time, all eyes were on me.

The atmosphere instantly became tense, and there was dead silence.

"It's been more than an hour since we started. Why are you late?" Marilyn asked in a familiar complaining tone.

It was always my fault, regardless of the fact, even though she kissed another man.

Yves smiled playfully behind her with provocation.

Everyone was waiting for my embarrassment.

The atmosphere in the room had turned icy.

I glared at Marilyn and Yves coldly.

I reflected on the past three years, during which I humbled myself, constantly seeking her forgiveness and begging her to stay with me so I could treat her well wholeheartedly.

However, although we were in love, she cared about Yves, her beloved.

No matter what she did, he was always on her mind.

I remembered, once, my stomach hurt so much that I almost died.

Marilyn called an ambulance for me.

Yves reached her, inviting her to go out and have some fun.

She left me at home alone and turned away.

When the ambulance workers knocked on the door, I no longer had the strength to stand up and open the door.

They had no choice but to break in and take me to the hospital.

The next day, Marilyn returned, saw the broken door, and asked me what had happened.

I explained the situation.

Marilyn complained I was fragile, insisting it was just a stomachache and that there was no need to overreact.

She also mentioned that girls experienced menstrual cramps every month, which were more severe.

I used to endure a lot of things silently.

I understood how important a once-beloved person could be.

It was the eternal regret left from one's youth.

So, I tried my best to be nice to Marilyn.

However, the scene today completely ignited my rage.

That was why everything had just happened.

I walked up to Yves and suggested the winner could take Marilyn away.

Then, my behavior annoyed her.

In order to vent her anger, she held Yves' face and gave him a passionate kiss for three minutes without hesitation.

I smiled calmly.

Marilyn thought I would be jealous and hysterically beg for her forgiveness.

But I wouldn't do that again.

My affection, which had been so long neglected, would at last fade away.

"Since you want to be together, I wish you happiness."

I grabbed a piece of watermelon from the table, ate it, and then left the private room.

I used to care too much about Marilyn.

Afraid of losing her, I acted cautiously and compromised just to keep her.

But today, I finally figured it out and got over her, and I felt more relaxed than ever before.

If today's event had happened in the past, I must have hidden in the corner and watched them partying.

After they enjoyed themselves, I would slowly pack up their things, hail taxis for them one by one, and carry the drunk Marilyn back home.

Now, I let her and Yves have fun together instead.

Since you couldn't forget him, be with him.

Back at home, I turned on my computer and started preparing for the project assigned by my boss.

He asked me to work overtime and once again proposed recommending me for a position at the New York headquarters today.

My performance had been excellent, and my boss had previously recommended me for advancement there.

At headquarters, my existing wages would be doubled.

Moreover, there were more development opportunities and brighter future prospects in big cities.

In the past, in order to maintain my relationship with Marilyn and to be with her, I had refused my boss.

But this time, I decided to take the opportunity and try my luck out there.

I thought that I could finally marry Marilyn.

Then, we would live an ordinary yet happy life in a small city.

Over the years, it dawned on me that it was all just my wishful thinking.

After gathering myself, I began to prepare for the project at hand.

It was quite challenging and could be seen as a form of evaluation for me.

I couldn't afford to make any mistakes at all.

I was busy until after eleven o'clock in the evening.

Marilyn called me.

Before I could even make a sound, she scolded, "What do you mean? It is my birthday today, but you left me here alone."

"Did you kiss alone?" I asked coldly.

"Are you crazy? We just kissed, but it meant nothing!"

"Be with him, and don't come to disgust me."

With that, I hung up.

Marilyn made a few more calls, but I set my phone aside.

I ignored her and went to bed after taking a shower.

The next morning, I woke up and saw Marilyn's latest post on Instagram.

She took a few photos of her snuggling in Yves' arms.

The text read: [Love is unreliable, and only friendship lasts forever.]

Marilyn's post on Instagram suddenly amused me.

I recalled a time when I upset her, but in reality, she was being unreasonable.

She packed up her belongings and slammed the door. No matter how much I begged her, she was unwilling to go back.

Then, she took a taxi to Yves' residence.

She video-called me in the middle of the night.

In the camera, she rested in Yves' arms, threatening me to pick her up quickly.

If I couldn't arrive there within an hour, she might sleep with him.

Without hesitation, I drove over.

I drove at around 120 mph the whole way and ended up losing five or six points for speeding.

I even almost had a car accident.

Upon reflection, I found myself really naive back then.

I came to the company and gave a preliminary report on the progress of my project.

My boss was very satisfied with it.

In just one night, I had sorted out the general framework of the project in an orderly manner.

My boss attached great importance to the project and also assigned it to another person.

It was Aurora Murphy from the next department.

She was a popular beauty in the company.

We occasionally ran into each other in our daily lives.

After talking to her, I discovered that she was my schoolmate but a grade below me.

"You are alumni. You must work hard to make this project a success."

If the project could be successfully completed, we could both go to the company headquarters.

I usually thought of Marilyn when I was working.

From time to time, I would take out my cell phone and send a message to her.

Although she didn't respond most of the time and even complained I was annoying, I still enjoyed doing so.

But today, I kept concentrating on my project.

She didn't even cross my mind at all.

After I got off work in the afternoon, she actually called me.

"What do you mean? I've been out all day. Don't you even contact me?"

Perhaps she was in the habit of blaming me. She found fault with me all the time, even though she was wrong.

"Spend your time with Yves."

Since I had already decided to break up, I didn't want to have any hesitation.

"You..."

My reply annoyed Marilyn so much that she was speechless and simply hung up.

It felt so good not to have to care about someone.

Back at home, I made a simple dinner.

In the past, I always cooked for her, even though Marilyn often came home very late.

If she returned and saw there was no food for her in the refrigerator, she would scold me.

After a few days of coldness, she finally took the initiative to send a message.

"You must pick me up tonight."

It was too dangerous to drive late at night, so I'd rather sleep peacefully.