Chapter 2

“Layla, the food’s getting cold. Come on over already.”

She kept her voice low.

“I’ve got to go now. We’ll talk later.”

There it was again: “We’ll talk later.”

It had been three years, and all her promises had been left at “later.”

I sat on the bed in the guest room, clutching my phone. Five minutes later, I got a call from an unknown number.

“Dylan? It’s me, Alban.”

His voice was warm and soft.

“Layla told me to tell you that she won’t be coming back tonight. She said not to wait up for her and to get some rest early.”

I did not say anything.

He paused for a few seconds, then added, “Dylan, Layla says you’re the most understanding person there is. You definitely won’t get upset over something so trivial, will you?

“She said you never hold a grudge.”

…

“Dylan, open the door. I’m here to pick something up.”

The next day at noon, Alban was standing at the door.

He was wearing a light gray knit sweater. His short hair was neatly styled, and he was holding two cups of coffee.

I opened the door. He slipped into the dark blue slippers and walked in.

His movements were so practiced that he did not even have to look for the switch before turning on the living room spotlights.

That switch was hidden behind a decorative panel in the corner of the wall. It took me a whole week to find it back then.

He sank into the sofa and set the coffees down on the table.

“I got you one. Less sugar. Layla said you don’t like it too sweet.”

I did not take it.

“Why are you here?

“I needed a change of clothes. It’s been a bit inconvenient staying at a hotel with Layla lately.”

He smiled, got up, and walked into the bedroom. Then, he opened the closet.

As he passed the nightstand, he casually picked up a photo frame.

It was the only photo Layla and I had together.

That day, I had begged her for a long time before she reluctantly agreed to take one. She remained expressionless the whole time.

Alban stared at the photo for two seconds. Then, he flipped the frame face-down on the dresser.

“We probably don’t need this anymore, do we?”

I walked over and turned the frame back over.

He tilted his head to look at me. His tone carried a hint of cautious probing.

“Dylan, don’t you know it?”

“Know what?”

“Layla said your engagement was just a formality. Her grandma’s health isn’t good, and she’s been pushing for her to get married. So, she just went along with it.”

Just went along with it…

Three years ago, when I cut ties with my family to marry her, she said, “Dylan, I’m here for you.”

She told me to quit my management trainee position at that company in Southshire and come to Kingston Vale to help her start her business.

I crumpled up the offer for a $300,000 annual salary and tossed it into the trash.

She said we would work hard together. She promised that everything would be ours someday.

I had readily said, “Okay.”

Then, she told me that we were short on cash for the time being and asked me to cover the company’s operating expenses temporarily.

I said, “Okay.”

But all those “okays” became “I just went along with it” whenever she told the story.

Alban pulled a stack of clothes out of the closet. He spotted my plaid shirt buried at the very bottom.

“This shirt’s really old. Why are you still keeping it?”

“I bought it in college.”

“No wonder.”

He put the clothes away and was about to leave when he paused at the door to the guest bedroom.

“By the way, you’d better pack up your stuff. Layla said we’re officially moving back next week.”

I looked at him.

He quickly waved his hands.

“I don’t mean to chase you out. I’m just worried our stuff will get mixed up and be hard to sort out.

“Layla said you’re really understanding. She said you definitely won’t read too much into it.”

As he crouched down to put on his shoes, I noticed that he was wearing a watch on his wrist.

That watch used to be in the drawer of my nightstand.

It was a birthday gift my mom gave me when I turned eighteen.

“Where did you get that watch?”

He looked down at it.

He said sheepishly, “Layla gave it to me. She said she found it at a flea market. Isn’t it pretty?”

She had taken the birthday gift my mom gave me and gave it to someone else.

She not only gave it away but also reduced it to something she found at the “flea market.”

I stood there, frozen in place.

Alban opened the door. Then, he turned back and smiled.

“Oh, by the way, Layla’s going to cancel that supplementary card you have. Only one supplementary card can be linked to a primary card, so she’s going to get me one.”

“I’ve been the one paying off that bill all along.”

“Oh, really? Thank you so much.”

He took a couple of steps away with his coffee. Then, he turned back again.

“Layla told me to tell you that she remembers everything that’s happened lately. She’ll make it up to you later.

“But you’ll have to wait a little while. We still haven’t paid the deposit for our honeymoon hotel."