100 Things You Taught Me

I picked up my phone and replied to my boss’s text message.

[I’ll join the overseas assignment after the holidays.]

Outside the window, fireworks were still going off brightly. On New Year’s Eve next year, there wouldn’t be a seat missing at my parents’ dinner table because I’d be there.

…

Before leaving the house, I sent Chloe Smith a break-up text. She didn’t reply, and I had expected it.

The day Logan Creston returned to the country, she, as his childhood friend, replaced her pinned contact and notifications on social media from me to him.

Her reason was, “Logan just got divorced and isn’t doing too well. Right now, he needs our care and support the most.”

Later, Logan and I were involved in traffic accidents at the same time.

I called forty-three times, and Chloe didn’t answer once. Meanwhile, Logan made a call that lasted less than three seconds, and she answered it immediately.

Compared to those forty-three phone calls, this single text message was barely worth noticing.

At 3:30 a.m., I finally got home. Hearing the commotion, my parents bolted upright from the couch.

“Why are you back so late? Where’s Chloe?”

I calmly set my coat down. “Something came up, so she isn’t coming.”

Seeing my reaction, they exchanged a look and didn’t pry any further.

After I finished washing up, a plate of food that had been reheated who knows how many times was set before me. The rising steam made my eyes water. It was meatloaf, Chloe’s favorite.

Exhausted after a long day, I crashed into bed and fell asleep. However, early the next morning, the noise woke me up.

As I pushed open the door, I saw both of them on the couch, happily playing some video games. In the kitchen, my dad was making tea, and my mom was reheating the meatloaf.

I looked up at the old-fashioned clock hanging on the wall. It was 5:20 a.m. My elderly parents had slept for less than two hours, yet they were forced to get up and prepare a belated New Year’s Eve dinner.

Logan was the first person to see me.

“Mark, you’re finally awake!” His eyes lit up as he jumped off the couch to drag me over.

Before I could say anything, Chloe grabbed Logan’s arm from behind. Sighing helplessly, she bent down to put his shoes on for him.

“A second ago you were complaining that you were so dizzy and weak from hunger that you couldn’t even stand straight. Are you feeling better now?”

Logan casually ruffled his hair and flashed me an embarrassed grin.

“Sorry about that, Mark. My low blood sugar kicked in. She’s making a big fuss over nothing. She insisted on waking up your parents to reheat my favorite meatloaf. I told her not to bother!”

I stood there, my hands clenching into fists.

Subconsciously, I blurted out, “You love meatloaf, too?”

Logan blinked innocently. “Yeah, I’ve loved it since I was a kid! Chloe used to hate it, but I would force her to eat it every time. Afterwards, she’d complain about how much she disliked them. It was hilarious.”

Numbness gradually spread through half my body, and only then did I realize the ironic truth.

After graduation, Logan got married and settled abroad. And every New Year’s Eve, the one dish Chloe specifically requested was meatloaf.

As someone who couldn’t stand the texture, I had forced myself to adapt for eight long years. Yet, during those eight years, I lived like a shadow tailored to Chloe Smith’s preferences.

Her gaze drifted onto Logan, wearing a smile I had never seen before.

“I didn’t like it back then, but I later realized that it actually tastes pretty good.”

“Pfft, I told you it was the best!”

As soon as he said that, my mom walked out of the kitchen carrying a plate of food. Before she could even set the plate down, her body went limp, and she collapsed.

“Mom!”

Panic-stricken, I rushed over and helped her into the bedroom to rest. When I came back out to get her medication, Chloe suddenly grabbed my arm.

Her eyebrows knitted slightly in hesitation, but she spoke anyway. “Dad is taking care of Mom in there. Logan’s blood sugar is low, so go reheat the other plate of food first.”

Standing there, a chill ran down my spine.

After a long pause, I asked numbly, “Chloe, did you check my text message?”

Seeing the clueless look in her eyes, I understood immediately that she hadn’t read it. I should’ve known.

In the next second, I pulled my arm back coldly. “The food is in the kitchen. If you want it, you can reheat it yourself. And another thing– Chloe, those are my parents. Don’t address them as yours anymore.”

After eight years of dating, the relationship was going nowhere, and as for the answer I had been waiting for… I wasn’t going to wait for it anymore.