For Valentine's, so Jerome and I would have a chance to spend time together, Mom and Dad closed the diner for the whole day.

They invited the neighbors along to a hot-spring resort.

After all, everyone knew I'd trailed after Jerome Gilbert for six years.

What no one knew was that we'd been dating in secret for three.

Today was the day we'd agreed to go public.

It took real effort to squeeze half a day off out of my boss, and by the time I got to the resort, everyone was already in the water.

I tugged at the swimsuit Jerome had given me, my face a little warm.

The moment I stepped into the spring, though, I caught the awkward look on my parents' faces.

Daisy Gilbert, flushed and beaming, spoke up.

"Joanna Harding's here? Perfect timing. Jerome says he wants to introduce us to his girlfriend!"

The words had barely landed when Jerome came walking over, holding Lola Henson's hand.

"Look how well these two go together, ha."

"I hear you were all in the same class in high school? What a small world."

Jerome didn't look at me. He kept an arm around Lola as they came down into the water.

"Let me introduce her. This is my girlfriend, Lola."

The girl leaned shyly against his shoulder, and Mom gave a stiff smile and squeezed my hand.

Watching how close the two of them stood, I held Mom's hand and lifted the corner of my mouth.

"You're right, ma'am. It really is a small world."

"I've actually started seeing someone too. I'll introduce him to everyone tomorrow."

1

The second I said it, Jerome's brow furrowed.

A moment later my phone screen lit up.

【Don't do this. Tomorrow won't work. I told you, now isn't the time to go public.】

【I'll explain about Lola tonight. Don't be difficult.】

Difficult. Not the time.

I watched him casually drape a towel over Lola's shoulders.

Through the waterproof pouch, the words on the screen went blurry.

Mom's hand tightened around mine, worry in her eyes.

"Sweetheart, when did you start seeing someone?"

Daisy Gilbert's smile only widened.

"Kids these days have minds of their own. They don't tell us anything in advance!"

"How long have you known each other?"

I forced a smile.

"Not long. Two months."

Jerome visibly relaxed and shot me a soothing look.

The phone lit up again.

【That's more like it. Good girl.】

I didn't respond. I just looked away.

"Oh, that's wonderful! You're both of an age for it too. This is a double blessing, really."

"Back in the day, Joanna used to chase after Jerome and propose to him, saying she wanted to marry him!"

"Mom!"

He rarely cut in, but this wasn't to spare me the embarrassment.

"Lola's right here."

Lola giggled behind her hand.

"It's fine, Jerome. I don't mind."

"After all, the two of us did silly things like that back then too."

"And Joanna's got a boyfriend now, so she won't take that old joke to heart. Right?"

I nodded like it was nothing.

"Right. It's all in the past."

Jerome's face darkened for an instant.

Watching Daisy Gilbert fuss over Lola, my parents quickly made an excuse about being tired and took me back to our room.

The moment the door closed, Mom's eyes went red.

"Sweetheart, don't put on a brave face. So he has a girlfriend. We just won't like him anymore, that's all!"

Dad patted my head, trying to cheer me up.

"That's right. There are plenty of fish in the sea. Your old man will find you a good young man tomorrow!"

Listening to the two of them worry over me, my nose stung.

"Dad, Mom. I really don't like Jerome anymore."

I couldn't stand to see them, at their age, still having to swallow slights for their daughter's sake.

"You... don't tell me what you said out there was true?"

"Mm. I'll bring him home for dinner tomorrow."

Dad, thrilled, said "good" three times in a row.

Early the next morning, we said our goodbyes to the Gilberts.

Mom smiled radiantly in front of Mrs. Gilbert.

"Oh, I know, I know. Joanna, this child, never says anything until the last minute."

"Exactly, so the two of us have to head back early and get things ready!"

Watching her walk away, I felt something I couldn't quite name.

Jerome was always saying we had to avoid suspicion, so in everyone else's eyes, I'd become the little tagalong stuck to his side.

Even my parents were careful around him.

Then that day came, when I heard Mom arguing for me at the mouth of the alley,

and all at once I was just tired.

The woman there, cracking sunflower seeds, said I was desperate to marry, that I was after a rich husband.

And that Jerome looked down on me.

"Their family runs some cheap little breakfast joint, and they want to marry into the Gilberts?"

Mom, always so gentle, went red with anger and stood there trading insults with her, grocery basket still in hand.

Jerome was standing right beside me the whole time, and said nothing.

He unlocked a shared bike for me, the way he always did.

"Ride it over. Don't let anyone see you."

I stared at him, and the whole thing just felt absurd.

"If we're not going public, then let's break up."

He froze for just two seconds, then laughed.

A helpless kind of laugh.

"I mean it."

His face darkened a little, and he told me to wait until Valentine's.

I said nothing. I just pushed the shared bike into his arms and walked forward to meet my mother.

After that day, neither of us reached out to the other.

This meeting was something my parents had swallowed their pride to arrange.

And it was the last chance I'd decided to give Jerome.

I opened my phone and sent Kenneth Maddox a message.

【Come to my place for dinner tomorrow.】

He texted back fast, with a little sticker of a puppy wagging its tail.

I snorted a laugh before I could stop myself, and the next second my phone was pulled out of my hand.

Jerome tugged me off to an empty corner.

"Joanna, there's a limit to how long you can keep giving me the silent treatment."

"You lie like this, and when your parents find out, how are you going to cover it?"

"They're all heading back to make dinner. If I don't go, won't that put them in an awkward spot?"

"You could at least think about the older folks a little more..."

He said it, sighed, and took out a velvet box.

"Here. That necklace you said you liked last time, I bought it for you."

"Lola just broke up with someone and she was a wreck. I stayed with her all night. I wanted to explain yesterday, but there was never a chance."

"Don't be mad anymore, okay?"

I looked at the box and just found it funny.

Half a year ago I told him I wanted it, and he said he'd buy it for me next time.

Last night Lola posted that she loved this brand, and by today he'd bought it for me.

I took my phone back and scrolled to her post.

Three thirty in the morning, captioned:

【Maybe people only understand what real love is after they've lived through it.】

The photo showed a whole set of jewelry, with a large hand in the bottom right corner of the frame.

The watch on that hand, the familiar one, was the gift I'd saved three months' wages to give Jerome.

"This stuff, you gave it to her?"

Seeing the photo, Jerome's expression flickered, and he pinched the bridge of his nose.

"You know how she is. The second Lola gets upset she hurts herself. I have to keep her calm."

"When did you get this cold-blooded?"

Right. Of course I knew.

Back then, who in our class didn't know about this pair of doomed lovers?

Fighting, slapping each other, living like a romance novel.

Jerome gave up his guaranteed college placement for Lola, and when Daisy found out, she tore the two of them apart.

Later, riddled with guilt, she couldn't do enough for Lola.

I gave a dry laugh and handed the necklace back to him.

Before I could say anything, that special ringtone of his went off.

Jerome's voice instantly warmed with a smile.

"Okay, okay, I'll go buy you breakfast right now, you little princess."

He stepped off to the side as he talked, motioning with his eyes for me to wait.

I glanced at the necklace lying there alone on the ground, the one I'd waited half a year for, and turned to leave.

I wasn't going to wait anymore.

By the time I got in the car, Kenneth had already sent a whole string of messages.

I answered them one by one, and a smile finally reached my eyes.

When Mom and Dad heard that the boyfriend I'd mentioned was Kenneth, they were thrilled.

"That young man is steady, dependable!"

Back then my dad was hauling more than a hundred pounds of flour into the store by himself, in and out.

He was drenched in sweat and worn out when he ran into Kenneth passing by.

After that, Kenneth started coming around to lend a hand.

One thing led to another, and the two of them became unlikely friends despite the age gap.

One weekend when I came home, I saw someone skulking around in front of the counter.

I thought he was a thief and threw him over my shoulder.

Only later did I find out he'd come to pay the supplier's order money for my dad.

That was how the two of us got connected too.

I was home cooking when the doorbell rang.

I ran to the door, bouncing on my feet, but the one standing there was Jerome.

Lola and Daisy were behind him, looking a little put out.

"Ken's here?"

Mom wiped her hands and came over, then froze for a second when she saw them.

"Huh? Jerome, weren't the three of you going to stay out another day?"

Jerome, holding Lola's hand, paused, and couldn't help asking,

"Ken is...?"

"My boyfriend."

His face changed, and Lola quickly explained to my mom,

"Sorry to intrude, ma'am. Jerome said you've been neighbors for years, so I thought it wouldn't be right not to come pay a visit."

Daisy nodded and handed over a gift.

"Yes, yes, this child is just so thoughtful!"

"You really shouldn't have."

Dad came out of the kitchen, but there was no warmth in his tone.

The Gilberts were well off, and their whole family looked down on us. I knew it, and so did my parents.

My dad's breakfast diner, Jerome had never once set foot in it.

As he came through the door, he ground out a whisper in my ear,

"And to think I worried you were too heartbroken and came back early. You really do put on a full performance, don't you!"

At the table, he kept showing off how in love he and Lola were.

Kenneth messaged to say he was stuck in traffic.

As it got later and later, a trace of contempt crept onto Jerome's face.

"Joanna, how come this boyfriend of yours still isn't here?"

Lola smacked him, but her voice was all mockery.

"Oh, come on, maybe he's just busy with work."

"Honestly, you. It's not like Joanna would lie to us, right?"

Daisy weighed in too, all earnest concern.

"Being on time really does matter. It also lets us help you keep an eye on him."

My parents looked a little uncomfortable, but I stayed perfectly calm.

Just as they were about to start in again, the doorbell rang.

Kenneth pushed the door open, apology written all over his face, both hands loaded down with bags.

When he saw me, he wiped the sweat from his forehead and swept me into a big hug.

Then he held out a bouquet.

"Lady Joanna, this humble servant is late. Please accept my apologies!"

It made me laugh, and I took the things from his hands.

A neck-and-shoulder massager for my dad, chamomile tea for my mom.

You could tell he'd put thought into it.

Mom and Dad hurried over, beaming.

"You silly boy, why bring so much just for a visit!"

"Really, look at you, all worked up and sweaty. Sit down, take a rest!"

The few people at the table kept changing color.

When Kenneth sat down beside me, Jerome's face went dark and he gave a cold snort.

"Smooth-talker. All flash, no substance."

Dad's eyes cooled a few degrees at that, but Kenneth pressed a hand over his.

He smiled, laid a piece of food in my bowl, and said mildly,

"Still better than the ones who put on airs. My worry would be holding that pose too long, until it's too late to regret it."

Mom, all smiles, ladled him some soup.

Jerome's face went red, but Lola pulled him back.

The whole meal ended in an eerie silence.

Afterward, my parents rose to see the guests out.

Jerome hung back at the end, saying he wanted to talk with me.

Lola seemed to sense it. She turned back, eyes reddening, and called out to him.

"Jerome…"

His step faltered. I smiled and said,

"No need. Your girlfriend's calling you. Go on."

And with that I linked my arm through Kenneth's and went back inside.

Jerome ground his teeth, but he still turned and left.

Early the next morning, though, the one who showed up at the door was Lola.

She came straight to the point.

"I'll say it plainly. I know you and Jerome had a thing once."

She paused, a trace of scorn in her eyes.

"But I don't care. You've seen how Jerome loves me, haven't you?"

"He never forgot me."

"Getting with you back then was just to spite me."

My hands didn't stop tidying the room. I answered without much interest.

"Fine. Got it."

Lola clearly hadn't expected that reaction. She drew a few sharp breaths, then grabbed my hand.

"Enough! Stop standing there pretending you don't care!"

"Everyone knows you had a crush on Jerome back then!"

I shook her hand off.

Before I could get a word out, Jerome rushed over and threw himself in front of Lola.

"Joanna! Sulk all you want, but don't hurt Lola!"

The look he gave me was full of disgust. He never once noticed my wrist, red where she'd grabbed it.

Only when Lola spoke up did he register what had actually just happened.

He raised his voice, a little uneasy.

"Lola's emotionally fragile. I was just afraid you'd set her off."

I let out a scoffing laugh.

"If that's how you want to see it, there's nothing I can do."

Furious, Jerome charged forward without another word and tore apart the thing clenched in my hand.

I looked at the scraps all over the floor, and for a moment I couldn't breathe.

It was the blessing letter my grandmother wrote me before she died.

Back then I'd told her I'd met someone truly wonderful.

Someone who would stand in front of me when classmates bullied me, who would stay up late organizing notes for me.

Because of him,

I'd finally gone from "the diner owner's daughter" in people's mouths to Harding the Straight-A Star.

I told her this was the person I loved.

And so my grandmother wished for the two of us to end up together.

I crouched down and picked up the pieces one by one, dropping them into the trash.

Panic flickered through Jerome's eyes. He reached out, wanting to wipe the tears from the corner of my eye.

I dodged his hand and said, my voice gone hoarse,

"My boyfriend's coming soon. The two of you should go."

"I've forgotten everything that happened before. I wish you a long and happy life together."

Jerome tried to say something more, but Kenneth stepped in front of me.