No wonder she used to blow up at me. But now, I was done playing that game.

Iris didn't head straight to bed after taking off her coat. She just stood by the bed, watching me.

She looked like she wanted to say something. I wasn't in the mood to talk.

Iris finally spoke, "Albert, sorry about today.

Gavin was drunk, and no one else could pick him up, so I..."

Her words broke the silence, tinged with guilt. But it just annoyed me.

"Yeah, got it. Let's sleep," I said.

My indifferent response seemed to catch Iris off guard. She stopped talking.

3

Next morning, I woke up to find Iris had made breakfast and was waiting for me.

She slid the toast towards me when she saw me.

The toast was a bit burnt. Iris chuckled awkwardly and said, "This is my first time making breakfast. Just eat it, okay?"

I nodded and bit into the toast. We both sat there quietly.

I used to do all the cooking when we first got married, even handled all the chores.

But eventually, Iris complained my breakfasts were too boring.

She'd snapped one day, "It's the same stuff every day. I'm sick of it. Don't bother with mine anymore!"

Later, I found out she'd been grabbing breakfast with Gavin instead.

Since then, I stopped cooking in the mornings and just picked up something quick near work. It saved time.

I never thought I'd see the day Iris would cook.

She kept looking at me, then finally said, "Albert, sorry. I stood you up yesterday. The car show's still on today, right? How about I go with you?"

I set down the toast, shook my head, and said, "Don't bother."

I stood up to grab my coat and head out.

Iris came after me, looking worried, trying to make up for yesterday.

"Why not? Isn't the car show running for a few more days?" she asked.

I looked at her and said flatly, "It ended yesterday."

Iris froze. She never cared about cars and didn't know I'd been working extra just to make time for the car show. And still, I missed it.

As I turned to leave, I saw tears in Iris' eyes.

She stopped me, stumbling over her words trying to explain.

Iris said, "Albert, were you upset last night?

There's nothing going on with Gavin and me. We split up years ago. We're just friends now. He was just really drunk yesterday, and I was worried about him, so I..."

"I know," I cut her off with a smile, "Being drunk is dangerous. I get you're just friends. I didn't overthink it. Okay, I've got to head to work now."

I pretended not to see the hickey on her neck. I even pretended I hadn't noticed her phone's location at the hotel last night.

So, I didn't ask why she came home at 2 a.m.

Anyway, none of that mattered anymore.

4

I got assigned a business trip at work.

My boss patted my shoulder, saying if I nailed this trip, a promotion was just around the corner.

When I got home, I started to pack but knocked over a box next to my suitcase, spilling its contents.

As I picked things up, I found a book filled with photos.

They were all of Iris and her ex, Gavin. Some were from their trips, some from fooling around on a college field, and a few were of them kissing under the stars.

Those photos were snapshots of their young love.

I remembered finding these photos right after Iris and I married.

I was so jealous, and I asked her to throw them out. She agreed.

I didn't expect that she still kept these after three years of marriage.

Three years later, she still had them. She'd sometimes pull out that book and flip through it.

I put everything back quietly and then heard Iris' muffled voice.

"Heading out for your trip?" she asked.

"Yeah," I said, without looking back, continuing with my packing.

Iris looked at the photos I'd just put away and said with guilt, "Albert, I'll go throw these out now!"

I stopped her. "No need. They're your amiable memories. It's okay to keep them."

My tone was flat, casual, like it didn't matter.

Iris stared at me for a long time, seemingly unable to accept my reaction, then suddenly got upset.

She grabbed the book, pulled out the photos, and tore them up before tossing them in the trash.

I didn't react. Suddenly, Iris hugged me from behind. "Albert, I'm sorry.

I won't mess around with Gavin anymore. Let's just enjoy our life, okay?"

I felt indifferent, almost bored.

Before, such words from Iris would've made me overjoyed. I'd have kissed her and said, "I love you, babe."

But now? Nothing stirred inside me.

I'd given Iris plenty of chances over three years. She always thought I was making a big deal over nothing, not trusting her, picking on her.

Now I trusted her. No matter where she went, what she did, or what romantic photos she kept, I wouldn't ask.

Still, when I gently pushed her away, I couldn't understand why she started crying.

5

The business trip had me working non-stop for days, barely giving me a moment to check my phone.

By bedtime, I finally noticed dozens of missed calls and a slew of unread texts.

They were all from Iris: [Albert, are you still busy?], [It's 8 PM, did you eat dinner?], [Remember, you have a sensitive stomach. Don't skip meals or you'll be in pain.]

I scrolled through the messages emotionlessly.

Clearly, Iris hadn't paid attention to me in a long time. She didn't even know I'd had surgery and no longer suffered from stomach pains.

Six months ago, my stomach really bothered me, and the doctor suggested surgery might be necessary.

I mentioned it to Iris, hoping she'd come with me to the hospital. Instead, she brushed me off.

She was busy texting Gavin and looked up annoyed, saying, "You're not a child. Can't you handle a hospital visit?

I'm swamped tomorrow. No time for that."

So, I went to the hospital alone.

After the surgery, I lay in the recovery room by myself, waiting for the anesthesia to wear off.

Killing time on my phone, I found Gavin's latest Instagram post: him and Iris, hand in hand at the beach, captioned: [Finally watching the sunset with you.]

I put my phone down and went home alone.

While Iris and Gavin were clearly having a blast, she never asked about my day. And I never mentioned any of this.

6

I was just too tired. Iris had sent so many messages, but I fell asleep before I could finish reading them.

The next day, I remembered I hadn't replied to Iris. By then, it just didn't seem important.

I was busy impressing clients. Things went really well, and we were both pleased with the meeting.

As I was about to head back, Iris suddenly called.

I paused, surprised. Iris rarely called me first during our three years of marriage.

Usually, she'd just text if she needed something, avoiding long chats.

I picked up and she said, "Albert, turn around."

Turning, I saw Iris with a big tote, smiling and waving her phone at me.

"Surprise," she said. "I came to see you, Albert."

I managed a small smile, reminded of our first year together when I was all she could think about.

Back then, she wouldn't hesitate to take a three-hour train ride just to see me.

In that moment, I found myself wondering if we could really start fresh.

Iris jogged over with a smile and grabbed my arm. "There's a friends' get-together in town. I'll take you once you're free."

"Sure," I replied, in a good mood, letting Iris link arms with me.

But my mood tanked the moment the car door swung open and I saw Gavin sitting shotgun. My hopes of patching things up with Iris vanished.

Gavin rolled down the window, waved, and grinned. "Hey Albert, long time no see. Iris always brings you up."